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Applied Physics Letters

Low-noise parametric amplification at 35 GHz in a single Josephson tunnel junction

J. Mygind, N. F. Pedersen, O. H. Soerensen, Bjørn Dueholm, Mogens T. Levinsen

Published Jul 1, 1979• 25 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Parametric amplification at 35 GHz has been obtained using a single Josephson tunnel junction as the active element. The amplifier was operated in the singly quasidegenerate mode with a pump frequency at 70 GHz. The noise temperature was measured and found correlated with the gain. At the highest gain achieved, 11.6 dB, the noise temperature was 400 K. The noise temperature was reduced considerably by decreasing the gain. At 8 and 4 dB we found 165±25 K and 50±30 K, respectively.

DOI
10.1063/1.90906

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Parametric amplification and oscillation at 36 GHz using a point-contact Josephson junction

Y. Taur, P. L. Richards

We have observed doubly degenerate parametric amplification and oscillation at 36 GHz from a single point-contact Josephson junction. The experimental results agree qualitatively with theoretical calculations based on the resistively shunted junction model. The estimated noise temperature of an amplifier with 11 dB net gain is consistent with zero, but has an upper limit of 50 K. Attempts to observe parametric amplification in the singly degenerate mode with a pump frequency of 72 GHz were not successful.

Journal of Applied Physics•Mar 1, 1977•42 citations
Parametric amplification at 35 GHz has been obtained using a single Josephson tunnel junction as the active element. The amplifier was operated in the singly quasidegenerate mode with a pump frequency at 70 GHz. The noise temperature was measured and found correlated with the gain. At the highest gain achieved, 11.6 dB, the noise temperature was 400 K. The noise temperature was reduced considerably by decreasing the gain. At 8 and 4 dB we found 165±25 K and 50±30 K, respectively.
Arrays of 10 or 40 series-connected small densely packed Josephson tunnel junctions were successfully operated as parametric amplifiers at 10 GHz. Between 50 and 90% of the junctions in an array were observed to work coherently in the amplification process. Signal gain exceeding 24 dB was achieved with a pump power as low as −50 to −70 dBm. A power width (i.e., the range of the pump power for a gain within 3 dB of the peak gain) of 0.25 dB and a bandwidth of 15 MHz were measured for 20-dB gain. The power width was in accordance with theory but the bandwidth was reduced, probably due to noise saturation effects. The latter effects can be reduced by lowering the input noise temperature or by including an external band limitation. The noise temperature was also increased by saturation; however, with an external bandwidth of 60 MHz, a noise temperature of 30±20 K was measured. The application of a magnetic field has proved extremely useful as a means of tuning the amplifiers to stable high-gain operating points. This tuning was also utilized in evaluating the amplifier parameters, and the theory by Feldman, Parrish, and Chiao has been verified. The upper frequency limit for a lead tunnel junction amplifier ought to be well above 300 GHz.
We have studied the parametric amplification properties of an internally pumped Josephson tunnel junction, where the shunt contained resistive and inductive components. The amplification was, in this case, limited by circuit component values to less than 8 dB at 10 GHz, but it was very stable against variations in bias conditions. The amplifier gain-bandwidth product was large and the noise level very low. We estimated the noise temperature to be less than 50 K, which should make the device attractive for mm-wave amplification.
We have observed doubly degenerate parametric amplification and oscillation at 36 GHz from a single point-contact Josephson junction. The experimental results agree qualitatively with theoretical calculations based on the resistively shunted junction model. The estimated noise temperature of an amplifier with 11 dB net gain is consistent with zero, but has an upper limit of 50 K. Attempts to observe parametric amplification in the singly degenerate mode with a pump frequency of 72 GHz were not successful.