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Applied Physics Letters

Quantum capacitance and charge sensing of a superconducting double dot

N. J. Lambert, A. A. Esmail, Megan Edwards, Felix A. Pollock, Brendon W. Lovett, Andrew J. Ferguson

Published Sep 12, 2016• 8 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We study the energetics of a superconducting double dot, by measuring both the quantum capacitance of the device and the response of a nearby charge sensor. We observe different behaviour for odd and even charge states and describe this with a model based on the competition between the charging energy and the superconducting gap. We also find that, at finite temperatures, thermodynamic considerations have a significant effect on the charge stability diagram.

DOI
10.1063/1.4962811

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We study the energetics of a superconducting double dot, by measuring both the quantum capacitance of the device and the response of a nearby charge sensor. We observe different behaviour for odd and even charge states and describe this with a model based on the competition between the charging energy and the superconducting gap. We also find that, at finite temperatures, thermodynamic considerations have a significant effect on the charge stability diagram.
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We increase the isolation of a superconducting double dot from its environment by galvanically isolating it from any electrodes. We probe it using high frequency reflectometry techniques, find 2e-periodic behaviour, and characterise the energy structure of its charge states. By modelling the response of the device, we determine the quasiparticle poisoning rate to be significantly worse than that of a unisolated double dot, and conclude that quasiparticle exchange between the dot and the leads is an important relaxation mechanism.
We increase the isolation of a superconducting double dot from its environment by galvanically isolating it from any electrodes. We probe it using high frequency reflectometry techniques, find 2e-periodic behaviour, and characterise the energy structure of its charge states. By modelling the response of the device, we determine the time averaged probability that the device is poisoned by quasiparticles, and by comparing this with previous work, we conclude that quasiparticle exchange between the dots and the leads is an important relaxation mechanism.
Understanding the interactions that couple gate-defined quantum-dot qubits is an important step to using such devices in quantum computing. For double-quantum-dot qubits with an effective charge dipole moment, a capacitive dipole-dipole interaction can yield coherent coupling between neighboring qubits. Here researchers reveal the tunability of this capacitive-coupling energy with applied gate voltages in a quadruple-quantum-dot array, tuning the coupling energy from 15 to 32 GHz. Modeling the system as a network of charge nodes joined by capacitors, the authors demonstrate how the capacitive-coupling energy between pairs of double dots depends on the various capacitances in the network.