arXiv subjects

Tero T. Heikkilä

Publications and source records attributed to Tero T. Heikkilä.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

Superconductivity near a magnetic domain wall

We study the equilibrium properties of a ferromagnetic insulator/superconductor structure near a magnetic domain wall. We show how the domain wall size is affected by the superconductivity in such structures. Moreover, we calculate several physical quantities altered due to the magnetic domain wall, such as the spin current density and local density of states, as well as the resulting tunneling conductance into a structure with a magnetic domain wall.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2019

Proximity Effect in Superconducting Heterostructures with Strong Spin-Orbit Coupling and Spin Splitting

It has been shown that singlet Cooper pairs can be converted into triplet ones and diffuse into a ferromagnet over a long distance in a phenomenon known as the long-range proximity effect (LRPE). This happens in materials with inhomogeneous magnetism or spin-orbit coupling (SOC). Most of the previous studies focus on the cases with small SOC and exchange field. However, the physics was not clear when SOC and exchange field strength are both much greater than the disorder strength. In this work, we consider a two dimensional system with a large Rashba-type SOC and exchange field in the case where only one band is partially occupied. We develop a generalized quasiclassical theory by projecting the Green function onto the partially occupied band (POB). We find that when the SOC energy scale is comparable with the exchange field, there is no LRPE. The reason is that the nonmagnetic impurities together with the large SOC and exchange field can effectively generate spin-flip scattering, which suppresses the proximity effect. We also show that when increasing either SOC or exchange field, the decay length of superconducting correlations can be significantly increased due to an approximately restored time reversal symmetry or spin rotation symmetry around the $z$ (out-of-plane) axis.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2018

Thermoelectric radiation detector based on a superconductor-ferromagnet junction: calorimetric regime

We study the use of a thermoelectric junction as a thermal radiation detector in the calorimetric regime, where single radiation bursts can be separated in time domain. We focus especially on the case of a large thermoelectric figure of merit $ZT$ affecting significantly for example the relevant thermal time scales. This work is motivated by the use of hybrid superconductor/ferromagnet systems in creating an unprecedentedly high low-temperature $ZT$ even exceeding unity. Besides constructing a very general noise model which takes into account cross correlations between charge and heat noise, we show how the detector signal can be efficiently multiplexed by the use of resonant LC circuits giving a fingerprint to each pixel. We show that for realistic detectors operating at temperatures around 100 to 200 mK, the energy resolution can be as low as 1 meV. This allows for a broadband single-photon resolution at photon frequencies of the order or below 1 THz.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2017

Electron refrigeration in hybrid structures with spin-split superconductors

Electron tunneling between superconductors and normal metals has been used for an efficient refrigeration of electrons in the latter. Such cooling is a non-linear effect and usually requires a large voltage. Here we study the electron cooling in heterostructures based on superconductors with a spin-splitting field coupled to normal metals via spin-filtering barriers. The cooling power shows a linear term in the applied voltage. This improves the coefficient of performance of electron refrigeration in the normal metal by shifting its optimum cooling to lower voltage, and also allows for cooling the spin-split superconductor by reverting the sign of the voltage. We also show how tunnel coupling spin-split superconductors with regular ones allows for a highly efficient refrigeration of the latter.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2014

On the superconductivity of graphite interfaces

We propose an explanation for the appearance of superconductivity at the interfaces of graphite with Bernal stacking order. A network of line defects with flat bands appears at the interfaces between two slightly twisted graphite structures. Due to the flat band the probability to find high temperature superconductivity at these quasi one-dimensional corridors is strongly enhanced. When the network of superconducting lines is dense it becomes effectively two-dimensional. The model provides an explanation for several reports on the observation of superconductivity up to room temperature in different oriented graphite samples, graphite powders as well as graphite-composite samples published in the past.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2014

Lindblad equation approach for the full counting statistics of work and heat in driven quantum systems

We formulate the general approach based on the Lindblad equation to calculate the full counting statistics of work and heat produced by driven quantum systems weakly coupled with a Markovian thermal bath. The approach can be applied to a wide class of dissipative quantum systems driven by an arbitrary force protocol. We show the validity of general fluctuation relations and consider several generic examples. The possibilities of using calorimetric measurements to test the presence of coherence and entanglement in the open quantum systems are discussed.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2014

Enhancing optomechanical coupling via the Josephson effect

Cavity optomechanics is showing promise for studying quantum mechanics in large systems. However, smallness of the radiation-pressure coupling is a serious hindrance. Here we show how the charge tuning of the Josephson inductance in a single-Cooper-pair transistor (SCPT) can be exploited to arrange a strong radiation pressure -type coupling $g_0$ between mechanical and microwave resonators. In a certain limit of parameters, such a coupling can also be seen as a qubit-mediated coupling of two resonators. We show that this scheme allows reaching extremely high $g_0$. Contrary to the recent proposals for exploiting the non-linearity of a large radiation pressure coupling, the main non-linearity in this setup originates from a cross-Kerr type of coupling between the resonators, where the cavity refractive index depends on the phonon number. The presence of this coupling will allow accessing the individual phonon numbers via the measurement of the cavity.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2013

Energy and particle number fluctuations in superconducting heterostructures

We consider fluctuations of the energy on a mesoscopic island coupled to two leads. We use the Keldysh effective action formalism to derive the Langevin equation for the energy of the island in a very general setting and show how the Langevin equation for the case of uncorrelated tunneling events is derived from a more general one. As an application of the theory, we consider a superconducting island coupled to two normal metal leads and calculate the statistics of the temperature (in the quasiequilibrium case) and the number of quasiparticle excitations on the island.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2012

Multimode circuit optomechanics near the quantum limit

The coupling of distinct systems underlies nearly all physical phenomena and their applications. A basic instance is that of interacting harmonic oscillators, which gives rise to, for example, the phonon eigenmodes in a crystal lattice. Particularly important are the interactions in hybrid quantum systems consisting of different kinds of degrees of freedom. These assemblies can combine the benefits of each in future quantum technologies. Here, we investigate a hybrid optomechanical system having three degrees of freedom, consisting of a microwave cavity and two micromechanical beams with closely spaced frequencies around 32 MHz and no direct interaction. We record the first evidence of tripartite optomechanical mixing, implying that the eigenmodes are combinations of one photonic and two phononic modes. We identify an asymmetric dark mode having a long lifetime. Simultaneously, we operate the nearly macroscopic mechanical modes close to the motional quantum ground state, down to 1.8 thermal quanta, achieved by back-action cooling. These results constitute an important advance towards engineering entangled motional states.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2012

Absorption of heat into a superconductor-normal metal-superconductor junction from a fluctuating environment

We study a diffusive superconductor-normal metal-superconductor junction in an environment with intrinsic incoherent fluctuations which couple to the junction through an electromagnetic field. When the temperature of the junction differs from that of the environment, this coupling leads to an energy transfer between the two systems, taking the junction out of equilibrium. We describe this effect in the linear response regime and show that the change in the supercurrent induced by this coupling leads to qualitative changes in the current-phase relation and for a certain range of parameters, an increase in the critical current of the junction. Besides normal metals, similar effects can be expected also in other conducting weak links.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

Energy relaxation in graphene and its measurement with supercurrent

We study inelastic energy relaxation in graphene for low energies to find out how electrons scatter with acoustic phonons and other electrons. By coupling the graphene to superconductors, we create a strong dependence of the measured signal, i.e.,\ critical Josephson current, on the electron population on different energy states. Since the relative population of high- and low-energy states is determined by the inelastic scattering processes, the critical current becomes an effective probe for their strength. We argue that the electron-electron interaction is the dominant relaxation method and, in our model of two-dimensional electron-electron scattering, we find a scattering time $τ_{e-e}=5... 13$ ps at T=500 mK, 1-2 orders of magnitude smaller than predicted by theory.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2010

Linear AC Response of Diffusive SNS Junctions

We explore the behavior of the ac admittance of superconductor-normal metal-superconductor (SNS) junctions as the phase difference of the order parameters between the superconductors is varied. We find three characteristic regimes, defined by comparing the driving frequency $ω$ to the inelastic scattering rate $Γ$ and the Thouless energy $E_T$ of the junction (typically $\hbarΓ\ll E_T$). Only in the first regime $ω\ll Γ$ the usual picture of the kinetic inductance holds. We show that the ac admittance can be used to directly access some of the characteristic quantities of the SNS junctions, in particular the phase dependent energy minigap and the typically phase dependent inelastic scattering rate. Our results partially explain the recent measurements of the linear response properties of SNS Superconducting Quantum Interference Devices (SQUIDs) and predict a number of new effects.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2010

Dimensional crossover in topological matter: Evolution of the multiple Dirac point in the layered system to the flat band on the surface

We consider the dimensional crossover in the topological matter, which involves the transformation of different types of topologically protected zeroes in the fermionic spectrum. In the considered case, the multiple Dirac (Fermi) point in quasi 2-dimensional system evolves into the flat band on the surface of the 3-dimensional system when the number of atomic layers increases. This is accompanied by formation of the spiral nodal lines in the bulk. We also discuss the topological quantum phase transition at which the surface flat band shrinks and changes its chirality, while the nodal spiral changes its helicity.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2010

Physics of Proximity Josephson Sensor

We study the proximity Josephson sensor (PJS) in both bolometric and calorimetric operation and optimize it for different temperature ranges between 25 mK and a few Kelvin. We investigate how the radiation power is absorbed in the sensor and find that the irradiated sensor is typically in a weak nonequilibrium state. We show in detail how the proximity of the superconductors affects the device response: for example via changes in electron-phonon coupling and out-of-equilibrium noise. In addition, we estimate the applicability of graphene as the absorber material.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2010

Theory of Microwave-Assisted Supercurrent in Diffusive SNS Junctions

The observation of very large microwave-enhanced critical currents in superconductor-normal metal-superconductor (SNS) junctions at temperatures well below the critical temperature of the electrodes has remained without a satisfactory theoretical explanation for more than three decades. Here we present a theory of the supercurrent in diffusive SNS junctions under microwave irradiation based on the quasiclassical Green's function formalism. We show that the enhancement of the critical current is due to the energy redistribution of the quasiparticles in the normal wire induced by the electromagnetic field. The theory provides predictions across a wide range of temperatures, frequencies, and radiation powers, both for the critical current and the current-phase relationship.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2009

Phase-dependent noise correlations in normal-superconducting structures

We study nonequilibrium noise correlations in diffusive normal-superconducting structures in the presence of a supercurrent. We present a parametrization for the quasiclassical Green's function in the first order of the counting field $χ$. This we employ to obtain the voltage and phase dependence of cross and autocorrelations and to describe the role played by the setup geometry. We find that the low-voltage behavior of the effective charge $q_{\rm eff}$ describing shot noise is a result of a competition between anticorrelation of Andreev pairs due to proximity effect and the depression of the local density of states. Furthermore, we show that the noise correlations are independent of the sign of the supercurrent.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2008

Nonequilibrium transport in mesoscopic multi-terminal SNS Josephson junctions

We report the results of several nonequilibrium experiments performed on superconducting/normal/superconducting (S/N/S) Josephson junctions containing either one or two extra terminals that connect to normal reservoirs. Currents injected into the junctions from the normal reservoirs induce changes in the electron energy distribution function, which can change the properties of the junction. A simple experiment performed on a 3-terminal sample demonstrates that quasiparticle current and supercurrent can coexist in the normal region of the S/N/S junction. When larger voltages are applied to the normal reservoir, the sign of the current-phase relation of the junction can be reversed, creating a "$π$-junction." We compare quantitatively the maximum critical currents obtained in 4-terminal $π$-junctions when the voltages on the normal reservoirs have the same or opposite sign with respect to the superconductors. We discuss the challenges involved in creating a "Zeeman" $π$-junction with a parallel applied magnetic field and show in detail how the orbital effect suppresses the critical current. Finally, when normal current and supercurrent are simultaneously present in the junction, the distribution function develops a spatially inhomogeneous component that can be interpreted as an effective temperature gradient across the junction, with a sign that is controllable by the supercurrent. Taken as a whole, these experiments illustrate the richness and complexity of S/N/S Josephson junctions in nonequilibrium situations.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2007

Thermoelectric effects in superconducting proximity structures

Attaching a superconductor in good contact with a normal metal makes rise to a proximity effect where the superconducting correlations leak into the normal metal. An additional contact close to the first one makes it possible to carry a supercurrent through the metal. Forcing this supercurrent flow along with an additional quasiparticle current from one or many normal-metal reservoirs makes rise to many interesting effects. The supercurrent can be used to tune the local energy distribution function of the electrons. This mechanism also leads to finite thermoelectric effects even in the presence of electron-hole symmetry. Here we review these effects and discuss to which extent the existing observations of thermoelectric effects in metallic samples can be explained through the use of the dirty-limit quasiclassical theory.

cond-mat.supr-con↗