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Applied Physics Letters

Harmonic current-phase relation in Nb–Al-based superconductor/insulator/normal conductor/insulator/superconductor-type Josephson junctions between 4.2 K and the critical temperature

Martin Götz, Vladimir V. Khanin, H. Schulze, Alexander B Zorin, J. Niemeyer, Evgeni V. Il’ichev, A. Chwala, Hans E. Hoenig, H.‐G. Meyer

Published Aug 28, 2000• 5 citations
Publisher

Abstract

For a study of the supercurrent–phase relationship, we have fabricated Nb/Al/AlOx/Al/AlOx/Al/Nb-based Josephson junctions of low critical current density. At 4.2 K, junctions of a nominal area of 10×10 μm2 showed a nonhysteretic dc current–voltage characteristic with a critical current of about 10 μA. Similar junctions were part of washer-type rf superconductor quantum interference devices. These samples were inductively coupled to high-quality tank circuits for measurements at 4.2 K or at higher temperatures up to values close to the critical temperature of niobium. In this range, the current–phase relation, as deduced from impedance measurements of the phase-biased junction, did not deviate significantly from the sinusoidal shape.

DOI
10.1063/1.1290142

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For a study of the supercurrent–phase relationship, we have fabricated Nb/Al/AlOx/Al/AlOx/Al/Nb-based Josephson junctions of low critical current density. At 4.2 K, junctions of a nominal area of 10×10 μm2 showed a nonhysteretic dc current–voltage characteristic with a critical current of about 10 μA. Similar junctions were part of washer-type rf superconductor quantum interference devices. These samples were inductively coupled to high-quality tank circuits for measurements at 4.2 K or at higher temperatures up to values close to the critical temperature of niobium. In this range, the current–phase relation, as deduced from impedance measurements of the phase-biased junction, did not deviate significantly from the sinusoidal shape.
Niobium-based junctions are still the best candidates for many small-scale applications of superconductivity and in particular, for the design and the fabrication of programmable voltage standards and D/A converters of fundamental accuracy. Non-hysteretic junctions with a large current density JC, and a reasonable characteristic voltage Vc are required, while, in order to make these circuits available to a wider market, operation at temperatures above 4.2 K would be important. In this work we report our results achieved on Nb/Al-AlOX/Nb junctions whose properties are studied in order to optimize the aforementioned features. Their behavior is analyzed showing how the overdamped characteristic is obtained with a less critical structure compared to other type of junctions. Moreover, using the scattering matrix approach, we have calculated a deviation of superconducting current-phase relation in such a SNIS Josephson junction from sinusoidal one and its effect on the current amplitudes of Shapiro steps as function of temperature. Measurement of the step dependence on temperature are also reported, where we considered the possibility of using bothn= 1 andn= 2 RF step above 4.2 K, for a possible reduction of the number of junctions in array circuits.
Single nonhysteretic superconductor-metal-superconductor Josephson junctions consisting of Nb-Ti-Nb were prepared using the well-known anodization process for the isolation of the junctions. The 4×4 μm2 junctions show overdamped Josephson current-voltage characteristics at 4.2 K. The characteristic voltage IcRn is about 8.0 μV at a critical current density jc of about 29 kA/cm2. Under the influence of 10.5 GHz microwave irradiation the constant-voltage steps of n=0 and ±1 are observed with current amplitudes of about 3 mA.
We investigated current-voltage characteristics of unshunted and externally shunted Josephson junctions (JJs) with high critical current densities Jcin order to extract their basic parameters and statistical characteristics for JJ modeling in superconducting integrated circuits as well as to assess their potential for future technology nodes. Nb/AlOx-Al/Nb junctions with diameters from 0.5 to 6 μm were fabricated using a fully planarized process with Mo or MoNxthin-film shunt resistors with sheet resistance Rsq= 2 Ω/sq and Rsq= 6 Ω/sq, respectively. We used our current standard MIT Lincoln Laboratory process node SFQ5ee to fabricate JJs with Jc= 0.1 mA/μm2and our new process node SFQ5hs (where “hs” stands for high speed) to make JJs with Jc= 0.2 mA/μm2and higher current densities up to about 1 mA/μm2. Using LRC resonance features on the I-V characteristics of shunted JJs, we extract the inductance associated with Mo shunt resistors of 1.4 pH/sq. The main part of this inductance, about 1.1 pH/sq, is the inductance of the 40-nm Mo resistor film, while the geometrical inductance of superconducting Nb wiring contributes the rest. We attribute this large inductance to “kinetic” inductance arising from the complex conductivity of a thin normal-metal film in an electromagnetic field with angular frequency ω, σ(ω) = σ0/(1 + iωτ), where σ0is the static conductivity and r the electron scattering time. Using a resonance in a large-area unshunted high-Jcjunction excited by a resistively coupled small-area shunted JJ, we extract the Josephson plasma frequency and specific capacitance of high-Jcjunctions in 0.1-1 mA/μm2Jcrange. We also present data on Jctargeting and JJ critical current spreads. We discuss the potential of using 0.2-mA/μm2JJs in very large scale integration single flux quantum circuits and 0.5-mA/μm2JJs in high-density integrated circuits without shunt resistors.
We measured the low frequency critical current noise in Nb/AlOx/Nb Josephson junctions. Unshunted junctions biased above the gap voltage and resistively shunted junctions biased near the critical current Ic have been measured. For both, the spectral density of δIc/Ic, Sic(f), is proportional to 1/f, scales inversely as the area A and is independent of Jc≡Ic/A over a factor of nearly 20 in Jc. For all devices measured at 4.2 K, Sic(1 Hz)=2.0±0.4×10−12/Hz when scaled to A=1 μm2. We find that, from 4.2 to 0.46 K, Sic(f) decreases linearly with temperature.
In an effort to determine the suitability of Josephson junctions for applications in quantum computation, we measured low-noise dc current-voltage characteristics of Nb/AlO/sub x//Nb and Al/AlO/sub x//Al junctions in the temperature range from 90 mK to 1 K. Nb-based samples were obtained from several different facilities with critical currents of a few /spl mu/A and critical current densities between 100 and 3000 A/cm/sup 2/. We fabricated the Al-based samples using double-angle evaporation and obtained critical currents of a few /spl mu/A with critical current densities of about 30 A/cm/sup 2/. We found that the sub-gap leakage current in the Nb-based samples does not depend on temperature in the range 90 mK to 1 K, whereas that for the Al-based samples follows the expected BCS behavior to about 150 mK. Our Al-based samples have a lower level of dissipation than Nb-based devices; however, both Al- and Nb-based samples achieved dissipation levels sufficiently low for some quantum computing applications.
Overdamped Nb/Al-AlOx/Nb Josephson junctions are an intermediate state between the SIS and SNS Josephson junctions. With a proper choice of fabrication parameters, stable and reproducible nonhysteretic curent-voltage characteristics have been obtained Featuring critical current densities up to 70 kA/cm2and characteristic voltages up to 450 μV at 4.2 K, overdamped junctions are suitable for many aplications ranging from RSFQ electronic circuits to programmable and ac voltage standards. Tests on single junctions arrays of series-connected junctions have shown a suitable behaviour when driven by a microwave with frequencies around 75 GHz. The quantized steps have proven to be stable and flat at nV level. These junctions also shown an improved temperature dependence, which can be interesting in view of the development instrumentation with an integrated quantum voltage reference operated in a closed cycle refrigerator.