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Highly Sensitive Superconducting Quantum-Interference Proximity Transistor

Alberto Ronzani, Carles Altimiras*, and Francesco Giazotto

  • NEST, Istituto Nanoscienze-CNR and Scuola Normale Superiore, I-56127 Pisa, Italy

  • *carles.altimiras@sns.it
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Phys. Rev. Applied 2, 024005 – Published 11 August, 2014

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevApplied.2.024005

Abstract

We report the design and implementation of a high-performance superconducting quantum-interference proximity transistor based on aluminum-copper technology. With the adoption of a thin and short copper nanowire, we demonstrate full phase-driven modulation of the proximity-induced minigap in the normal-metal density of states. Under optimal bias, we record unprecedentedly high flux-to-voltage (up to 3  mV/Φ0) and flux-to-current (exceeding 100  nA/Φ0) transfer function values at subkelvin temperatures, where Φ0 is the flux quantum. The best magnetic-flux resolution (as low as 500nΦ0/Hz at 240 mK being limited by the room-temperature preamplification stage) is reached under fixed current bias. These figures of merit combined with ultralow power dissipation and micrometer-size dimensions make this mesoscopic interferometer attractive for low-temperature applications such as the investigation of the magnetization of small spin populations.

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Phys. Rev. Applied 2, 024005– Published 11 August, 2014
  • Received 16 April 2014

© 2014 American Physical Society

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