Josephson current in a superconductor-ferromagnet junction with two non-collinear magnetic domains

Abstract

We study the Josephson effect in a superconductor--ferromagnet--superconductor (SFS) junction with ferromagnetic domains of non-collinear magnetization. As a model for our study we consider a diffusive junction with two ferromagnetic domains along the junction. The superconductor is assumed to be close to the critical temperature $T_c$, and the linearized Usadel equations predict a sinusoidal current-phase relation. We find analytically the critical current as a function of domain lengths and of the angle between the orientations of their magnetizations. As a function of those parameters, the junction may undergo transitions between 0 and $\pi$ phases. We find that the presence of domains reduces the range of junction lengths at which the $\pi$ phase is observed. For the junction with two domains of the same length, the $\pi$ phase totally disappears as soon as the misorientation angle exceeds $\pi /2$. We further comment on possible implication of our results for experimentally observable 0--$\pi$ transitions in SFS junctions.

9 pages, 4 figures, minor changes, references added

References in corpus (14)

• Spintronics: Fundamentals and applications
• Proximity effects in superconductor-ferromagnet heterostructures
• Odd Triplet Superconductivity and Related Phenomena in Superconductor-Ferromagnet Structures
• Coupling of two superconductors through a ferromagnet : evidence for a pi-junction
• Quiet SDS Josephson Junctions for Quantum Computing
• Enhancement of the Josephson current by an exchange field in superconductor-ferromagnet structures
• Josephson current in superconductor-ferromagnet structures with a nonhomogeneous magnetization
• Topologically protected quantum bits from Josephson junction arrays
• Superconducting pi qubit with a ferromagnetic Josephson junction
• Supercurrent in Long SFFS Junctions with Antiparallel Domain Configuration
• Striking properties of Superconductor/Ferromagnet structures with spin-dependent scattering
• From inversion to enhancement of the Josephson current by an exchange field in S/F-I-F/S tunnel structures
• Minigap in superconductor-ferromagnet junctions with inhomogeneous magnetization
• Theoretical description of the ferromagnetic $\pi$-junctions near the critical temperature

Cited by in corpus (29)

• Long range triplet Josephson effect through a ferromagnetic trilayer
• Experimental demonstration of a Josephson magnetic memory cell with a programmable π-junction
• Odd spin-triplet superconductivity in a multilayered superconductor-ferromagnet Josephson junction
• Theory of superconducting and magnetic proximity effect in S$\mid$F structures with inhomogeneous magnetization textures and spin-active interfaces
• Josephson effect and spin-triplet pairing correlations in SF1F2S junctions
• Interference phenomena and long - range proximity effect in clean superconductor -- ferromagnet systems
• Spin-valve Josephson junctions for cryogenic memory
• Superharmonic long-range triplet current in a diffusive Josephson junction
• Meissner Effect Probing of Odd-Frequency Triplet Pairing in Superconducting Spin Valves
• 0-pi Transitions in a Superconductor/Chiral Ferromagnet/Superconductor Junction induced by a Homogeneous Cycloidal Spiral
• Spin-triplet Supercurrent through Inhomogeneous Ferromagnetic Trilayers
• Josephson current in diffusive multilayer superconductor/ferromagnet/superconductor junctions
• Ferromagnetic Materials for Josephson π Junctions
• Josephson Junctions with a synthetic antiferromagnetic interlayer
• Josephson current in a superconductor -- ferromagnet -- superconductor junction with in-plane ferromagnetic domains
• Spin-polarized Josephson and quasiparticle currents in superconducting spin-filter tunnel junctions
• Phase Controllable Josephson Junctions for Cryogenic Memory
• Spin-valve Josephson junctions with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy for cryogenic memory
• Signature of the long range triplet proximity effect in the density of states
• Effective spin-flip scattering in diffusive superconducting proximity systems with magnetic disorder
• Spin-Singlet and Spin-Triplet Josephson Junctions for Cryogenic Memory
• Ferromagnetic Josephson junctions for cryogenic memory
• Spin-flip scattering and non-ideal interfaces in dirty ferromagnet/superconductor junctions
• Josephson effect in SIFS-tunnel junctions with domain walls in weak link region
• Josephson current through a ferromagnetic bilayer: Beyond the quasiclassical approximation
• Long-Range Triplet Supercurrents Induced by Singlet Supercurrents Parallel to Magnetic Interfaces
• Interference phenomena in Josephson junctions with ferromagnetic bilayers: Spin-triplet correlations and resonances
• Demonstration of 0-pi transition in Josephson junctions containing unbalanced synthetic antiferromagnets
• Supercurrent transmission through Ni/Ru/Ni synthetic antiferromagnets