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arXiv:1909.01487 · Physical Review Applied

Millimeter-Wave Four-Wave Mixing via Kinetic Inductance for Quantum Devices

Alexander Anferov, Aziza Suleymanzade, Andrew Oriani, Jonathan Simon, David Schuster

Published Feb 21, 2020• 46 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Millimeter-wave superconducting devices offer a platform for quantum experiments at temperatures above 1 K, and new avenues for studying light-matter interactions in the strong coupling regime. Using the intrinsic nonlinearity associated with kinetic inductance of thin-film materials, we realize four-wave mixing at millimeter-wave frequencies, demonstrating a key component for superconducting quantum systems. We report on the performance of niobium nitride resonators around 100 GHz, patterned on thin (20--50-nm) films grown by atomic layer deposition, with sheet inductances up to $212\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}\mathrm{pH}/◻$ and critical temperatures up to 13.9 K. For films thicker than 20 nm, we measure quality factors from $1\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{4}$ to $6\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{4}$, and explore potential loss mechanisms. Finally, we measure degenerate parametric conversion for a 95-GHz device with a forward efficiency up to $+16\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}\mathrm{dB}$, paving the way for the development of nonlinear quantum devices at millimeter-wave frequencies.

DOI
10.1103/physrevapplied.13.024056

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Millimeter-wave superconducting devices offer a platform for quantum experiments at temperatures above 1 K, and new avenues for studying light-matter interactions in the strong coupling regime. Using the intrinsic nonlinearity associated with kinetic inductance of thin-film materials, we realize four-wave mixing at millimeter-wave frequencies, demonstrating a key component for superconducting quantum systems. We report on the performance of niobium nitride resonators around 100 GHz, patterned on thin (20--50-nm) films grown by atomic layer deposition, with sheet inductances up to 212pH/◻212\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}\mathrm{pH}/◻212pH/◻ and critical temperatures up to 13.9 K. For films thicker than 20 nm, we measure quality factors from 1\ifmmode×\else\texttimes\fi1041\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{4}1\ifmmode×\else\texttimes\fi104 to 6\ifmmode×\else\texttimes\fi1046\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{4}6\ifmmode×\else\texttimes\fi104, and explore potential loss mechanisms. Finally, we measure degenerate parametric conversion for a 95-GHz device with a forward efficiency up to +16dB+16\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}\mathrm{dB}+16dB, paving the way for the development of nonlinear quantum devices at millimeter-wave frequencies.
Advancing superconducting quantum devices to higher operating frequencies broadens their functionality and enables operation at elevated temperatures, but it also requires near-quantum-limited amplifiers beyond the few-gigahertz regime. Here we present a junction-free, kinetic-inductance parametric amplifier based on thin-film niobium nitride (NbN) operating at 23 GHz in the microwave K-band, achieving a gain up to 40 dB, a 100 MHz gain-bandwidth product, a 1 dB saturation input power of -85 dBm with 23 dB gain, and added noise no greater than 1.4 quanta for phase-preserving amplification. Leveraging the large superconducting gap of NbN, this architecture can be extended to even higher frequencies, supporting applications such as high-fidelity readout of millimeter-wave superconducting qubits and axion searches over an expanded mass window.
Advancing superconducting quantum devices to higher operating frequencies broadens their functionality and enables operation at elevated temperatures, but it also requires near-quantum-limited amplifiers beyond the few-gigahertz regime. Here, we present a junction-free, kinetic-inductance parametric amplifier based on thin-film niobium nitride (NbN) operating at 23 GHz in the microwave K-band, achieving a gain up to 40 dB, a 100 MHz gain–bandwidth product, a 1 dB saturation input power of −85 dBm with 23 dB gain, and added noise not greater than 1.4 quanta for phase-preserving amplification. Leveraging the large superconducting gap of NbN, this architecture can be extended to even higher frequencies, supporting applications such as high-fidelity readout of millimeter-wave superconducting qubits and axion searches over an expanded mass window.
Nonlinear resonators of superconducting thin-film kinetic inductance have attracted considerable research interest in the fields of detectors, qubits, parametric amplifiers, and more. By tuning the deposition parameters, niobium titanium nitride (NbTiN) films (∼12 nm in thickness) present high resistivity(∼2000 μΩ cm) and large sheet kinetic inductance (∼0.7 nH/□). We designed resonators with NbTiN micronwire as the inductor and aluminum as the capacitor, which result in a high internal quality factor and a Kerr nonlinearity of a few hertz. The radio frequency response of the resonators demonstrates nonlinear behavior similar to that of the cubic Duffing oscillator, including frequency shift and hysteresis region. The kinetic inductance resonator is a promising candidate for high saturation power parametric amplifiers.
Niobium nitride (NbN\mathrm{Nb}\mathrm{N}NbN) is a particularly promising material for quantum technology applications, as it shows the degree of reproducibility necessary for large-scale superconducting circuits. We demonstrate that resonators based on NbN\mathrm{Nb}\mathrm{N}NbN thin films present a one-photon internal quality factor above 105{10}^{5}105 maintaining a high impedance (larger than $2\mathrm{k}\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Omega}}$), with a footprint of approximately $50\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}100\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}\text{\ensuremath{\mu}}{\mathrm{m}}^{2}$ and a Kerr nonlinearity of few tenths of a hertz. These quality factors, mostly limited by losses induced by the coupling to two-level systems, have been maintained for kinetic inductances ranging from tenths to hundreds of picoHenry per square. We also demonstrate minimal variations in the performance of the resonators during multiple cooldowns over more than nine months. Our work proves the versatility of niobium nitride high-kinetic-inductance resonators, opening perspectives towards the fabrication of compact, high-impedance, and high-quality multimode circuits, with sizable interactions.
We have designed, fabricated, and tested a frequency-tunable high-Q superconducting resonator made from a niobium titanium nitride film. The frequency tunability is achieved by injecting a DC through a current-directing circuit into the nonlinear inductor whose kinetic inductance is current-dependent. We have demonstrated continuous tuning of the resonance frequency in a 180 MHz frequency range around 4.5 GHz while maintaining the high internal quality factor Qi > 180 000. This device may serve as a tunable filter and find applications in superconducting quantum computing and measurement. It also provides a useful tool to study the nonlinear response of a superconductor. In addition, it may be developed into techniques for measurement of the complex impedance of a superconductor at its transition temperature and for readout of transition-edge sensors.
Superconducting high kinetic inductance elements constitute a valuable resource for quantum circuit design and millimeter-wave detection. Granular aluminum (grAl) in the superconducting regime is a particularly interesting material since it has already shown a kinetic inductance in the range of nH/□ and its deposition is compatible with conventional Al/AlOx/Al Josephson junction fabrication. We characterize microwave resonators fabricated from grAl with a room temperature resistivity of 4×10^{3} μΩ cm, which is a factor of 3 below the superconductor to insulator transition, showing a kinetic inductance fraction close to unity. The measured internal quality factors are on the order of Q_{i}=10^{5} in the single photon regime, and we demonstrate that nonequilibrium quasiparticles (QPs) constitute the dominant loss mechanism. We extract QP relaxation times in the range of 1 s and we observe QP bursts every ∼20 s. The current level of coherence of grAl resonators makes them attractive for integration in quantum devices, while it also evidences the need to reduce the density of nonequilibrium QPs.