2.4 GHz Flip-flop Device within Nonequilibrium Superconducting Diode

Abstract

Superconducting diode effect exhibits asymmetric critical supercurrent and has profound implications for condensed matter physics. The technical appeals of such superconducting diodes are their ultrahigh on-off ratio and diode efficiency for superconducting electronics owing to the dissipationless supercurrent therein. However, realizing superconducting diode operation at high working frequency, which is a key requirement for practical applications, remains elusive and challenging. Here, we demonstrate a polarity-controllable superconducting diode with non-equilibrium Josephson junction and its edge-triggered flip-flop operation at a high frequency up to 2.4 GHz, within a van der Waals superconductor 2M-WS${}_2$. By simply tuning the thickness of superconducting 2M-WS${}_2$ nanoflakes to engineer inversion asymmetry in the junction, we achieve a high diode efficiency of 67% and an on-off ratio exceeding 10${}^5$. Importantly, the pulse width and duty cycle of output pulse signals in such superconducting diode flip-flop devices can be controlled in a broadband frequency range crossing 12 orders of magnitude. Theoretical analysis reveals that the non-equilibrium dynamic nature of supercurrent in these Josephson junctions enables such a high diode operating frequency and the polarity control of supercurrent. The 2.4 GHz non-equilibrium Josephson diode developed here provides a promising platform for advanced superconducting logic circuits and broadband telecommunication applications.

33 pages, 4 figures