Measurements of Macroscopic Quantum Tunneling out of the Zero-Voltage State of a Current-Biased Josephson Junction

Michel H. Devoret; John M. Martinis; John Clarke

doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.55.1908

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Measurements of Macroscopic Quantum Tunneling out of the Zero-Voltage State of a Current-Biased Josephson Junction

Michel H. Devoret^*, John M. Martinis, and John Clarke

Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, and Materials and Molecular Research Division, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720

^*On leave from Service de Physique du Solide et de Résonance Magnétique, Centre d'Etudes Nucleaires de Saclay, 91191, Gif-sur-Y vette Cedex, France.

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Phys. Rev. Lett. 55, 1908 – Published 28 October, 1985

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.55.1908

Abstract

The escape rate of an underdamped ( $Q \approx 30$ ), current-biased Josephson junction from the zero-voltage state has been measured. The relevant parameters of the junction were determined in situ in the thermal regime from the dependence of the escape rate on bias current and from resonant activation in the presence of microwaves. At low temperatures, the escape rate became independent of temperature with a value that, with no adjustable parameters, was in excellent agreement with the zero-temperature prediction for macroscopic quantum tunneling.

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Nobel Prize: Quantum Tunneling on a Large Scale

Published 7 October, 2025

The 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics recognizes the discovery of macroscopic quantum tunneling in electrical circuits.

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References (16)

A. J. Leggett, Prog. Theor. Phys., Suppl. 69, 80 (1980) in Essays in Theoretical Physics in Honor of Dirk ter Haar, edited by W. E. Parry (Pergamon, Oxford, 1984), p. 95
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L. D. Jackel, J. P. Gordon, E. L. Hu, R. E. Howard, L. A. Fetter, D. M. Tennant, R. W. Epworth, and J. Kurkijärvi, Phys. Rev. Lett. 47, 697 (1981)
S. Washburn, R. A. Webb, R. F. Voss, and S. M. Faris, Phys. Rev. Lett. 54, 2712 (1985)
W. den Boer and R. de Bruyn Ouboter, Physica (Amsterdam) 98B, 185 (1980)
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D. B. Schwartz, B. Sen, C. N. Archie, A. K. Jain, and J. E. Lukens, in Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Superconducting Quantum Devices, Berlin, 25-28 June 1985 (unpublished)
W. C. Stewart, Appl. Phys. Lett. 12, 277 (1968) D. E. McCumber, J. Appl. Phys. 39, 3133 (1968)
T. A. Fulton and L. N. Dunkleberger, Phys. Rev. B 9, 4760 (1974)
M. Büttiker, E. P. Harris, and R. Landauer, Phys. Rev. B 28, 1268 (1983)
A. O. Caldeira and A. J. Leggett, Ann. Phys. (N.Y.) 149, 374 (1983)
I. Affleck, Phys. Rev. Lett. 46, 388 (1981)
M. H. Devoret, J. M. Martinis, D. Esteve, and J. Clarke, Phys. Rev. Lett. 53, 1260 (1984)
[13] [13]
H. Grabert and U. Weiss, Phys. Rev. Lett. 53, 1787 (1984)
Omitted endnote

[c1] A. J. Leggett, Prog. Theor. Phys., Suppl. 69, 80 (1980) in Essays in Theoretical Physics in Honor of Dirk ter Haar, edited by W. E. Parry (Pergamon, Oxford, 1984), p. 95

[c2] R. F. Voss and R. A. Webb, Phys. Rev. Lett. 47, 647 (1981)

[c3] L. D. Jackel, J. P. Gordon, E. L. Hu, R. E. Howard, L. A. Fetter, D. M. Tennant, R. W. Epworth, and J. Kurkijärvi, Phys. Rev. Lett. 47, 697 (1981)

[c4] S. Washburn, R. A. Webb, R. F. Voss, and S. M. Faris, Phys. Rev. Lett. 54, 2712 (1985)

[c5] W. den Boer and R. de Bruyn Ouboter, Physica (Amsterdam) 98B, 185 (1980)

[c6] R. J. Prance, A. P. Long, T. D. Clark, A. Widom, J. E. Mutton, J. Sacco, M. W. Potts, G. Megaloudis, and F. Goodall, Nature (London) 289, 543 (1981)

[c7] D. B. Schwartz, B. Sen, C. N. Archie, A. K. Jain, and J. E. Lukens, in Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Superconducting Quantum Devices, Berlin, 25-28 June 1985 (unpublished)

[c8] W. C. Stewart, Appl. Phys. Lett. 12, 277 (1968) D. E. McCumber, J. Appl. Phys. 39, 3133 (1968)

[c9] T. A. Fulton and L. N. Dunkleberger, Phys. Rev. B 9, 4760 (1974)

[c10] M. Büttiker, E. P. Harris, and R. Landauer, Phys. Rev. B 28, 1268 (1983)

[c11] A. O. Caldeira and A. J. Leggett, Ann. Phys. (N.Y.) 149, 374 (1983)

[c12] I. Affleck, Phys. Rev. Lett. 46, 388 (1981)

[c13] M. H. Devoret, J. M. Martinis, D. Esteve, and J. Clarke, Phys. Rev. Lett. 53, 1260 (1984)

[c14] [13] [13]

[c15] H. Grabert and U. Weiss, Phys. Rev. Lett. 53, 1787 (1984)

[c16] Omitted endnote

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Measurements of Macroscopic Quantum Tunneling out of the Zero-Voltage State of a Current-Biased Josephson Junction

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Nobel Prize: Quantum Tunneling on a Large Scale

References (16)

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