Coulomb blockade and Bloch oscillations in superconducting Ti nanowires

Abstract

Quantum fluctuations in quasi-one-dimensional superconducting channels leading to spontaneous changes of the phase of the order parameter by $2\pi$, alternatively called quantum phase slips (QPS), manifest themselves as the finite resistance well below the critical temperature of thin superconducting nanowires and the suppression of persistent currents in tiny superconducting nanorings. Here we report the experimental evidence that in a current-biased superconducting nanowire the same QPS process is responsible for the insulating state -- the Coulomb blockade. When exposed to RF radiation, the internal Bloch oscillations can be synchronized with the external RF drive leading to formation of quantized current steps on the I-V characteristic. The effects originate from the fundamental quantum duality of a Josephson junction and a superconducting nanowire governed by QPS -- the QPS junction (QPSJ).

5 pages, 4 figures

References in corpus (5)

• Localization of preformed Cooper-pairs in disordered superconductors
• Localized Superconductivity in the Quantum-Critical Region of the Disorder-Driven Superconductor-Insulator Transition in TiN Thin Films
• Quantum fluctuations in ultranarrow superconducting nanowires
• Quantum phase slip phenomenon in ultra-narrow superconducting nanorings
• Current to frequency conversion in a Josephson circuit

Cited by in corpus (7)

• NbSi nanowire quantum-phase-slip circuits: dc supercurrent blockade, microwave measurements and thermal analysis
• Quantum Phase-Slip Junction Under Microwave Irradiation
• Superconducting-semiconductor quantum devices: from qubits to particle detectors
• Superconducting MoSi nanowires
• Compact chromium oxide thin film resistors for use in nanoscale quantum circuits
• Superconducting insulators and localization of Cooper pairs
• Modeling and simulations of quantum phase slips in ultrathin superconducting wires