Parity Fluctuations Between Coulomb Blockaded Superconducting Islands
arXiv:cond-mat/9505030 · doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.75.1154
Abstract
We find that if two superconducting islands of different number parity are linked by a tunnel junction the unpaired electron in the odd island has a tendency to tunnel into the even island. This process leads to fluctuations in time of the number parity of each island, giving rise to a random telegraph noise spectrum with a characteristic frequency that has an unusual temperature dependence. This new phenomenon should be observable in a Cooper-pair pump and similar single-electron tunneling devices.
4 pages, self-unpacking uuencoded gz-compressed postscript file with 3 figures included; also available at http://www.lassp.cornell.edu/janko/publications.html