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Journal of Applied Physics

Emission of radiation from square arrays of stacked Josephson junctions

Giovanni Filatrella, B. L. Straughn, Paola Barbara

Published Dec 1, 2001• 13 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We propose a design for two-dimensional arrays of stacked Josephson junctions and study their properties as coherent sources of radiation in the mm and sub-mm wavelength range. This design can be implemented by using either mesas of intrinsic Josephson junctions, from crystals of high TC superconductors, or artificial stacks of low TC junctions. We outline a possible Nb/AlOx/Nb trilayer fabrication process for such devices. Our model for the dynamics of the system predicts the range of parameters over which the junctions synchronize.

DOI
10.1063/1.1412576

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We propose a design for two-dimensional arrays of stacked Josephson junctions and study their properties as coherent sources of radiation in the mm and sub-mm wavelength range. This design can be implemented by using either mesas of intrinsic Josephson junctions, from crystals of high TC superconductors, or artificial stacks of low TC junctions. We outline a possible Nb/AlOx/Nb trilayer fabrication process for such devices. Our model for the dynamics of the system predicts the range of parameters over which the junctions synchronize.
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We have developed a unique substrate terracing process to achieve two-dimensional arrays of high-T/sub c/ step-edge superconductor-normal metal-superconductor Josephson junctions. This process has been used to realize 3/spl times/3 and 3/spl times/6 antenna coupled arrays for direct detection of emission. An enhancement to this process incorporating a YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub 7-/spl delta// base layer and a Nb/PdAu ground plane is described. This modification enabled the fabrication of arrays capacitively coupled to detector junctions for detection of emission at frequencies beyond 300 GHz. This report details the motivation, design, fabrication process, and preliminary results of several array experiments.>
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Josephson junction arrays could be competitive candidates for radiation sources in the frequency range from 0.5 to 1.5 THz. This is the range where compact solid-state continuous wave sources are most lacking. We investigated the millimeter-wave radiation from arrays of high-temperature superconductor bicrystal Josephson junctions embedded in a quasi-optical resonator. The novel approach of utilizing the intrinsic resonance modes of the substrate to improve the impedance coupling between the series array of discrete Josephson junctions and the quasi-optical resonator was investigated by experiments and electromagnetic field simulations. Radiation from the arrays containing up to 536 junctions was detected at about 80 GHz and liquid nitrogen temperature using a low-noise receiver. The detected maximum radiation power of the arrays was about 50 pW and the peak voltage agreed exactly with the Josephson current–voltage relation.