Zel'dovich amplification in a superconducting circuit

Abstract

Zel'dovich proposed that electromagnetic (EM) waves with angular momentum reflected from a rotating metallic, lossy cylinder will be amplified. However, we are still lacking a direct experimental EM-wave verification of this fifty-year old prediction due to the challenging conditions in which the phenomenon manifests itself: the mechanical rotation frequency of the cylinder must be comparable with the EM oscillation frequency. Here we propose an experimental approach that solves this issue and is predicted to lead to a measurable Zel'dovich amplification with existing superconducting circuit technology. We design a superconducting circuit with low frequency EM modes that couple through free-space to a magnetically levitated and spinning micro-sphere placed at the center of the circuit. We theoretically estimate the circuit EM mode gain and show that rotation of the micro-sphere can lead to experimentally observable amplification, thus paving the way for the first EM-field experimental demonstration of Zel'dovich amplification.