Microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKIDs) are playing an increasingly role in THz astronomy. Superconducting coplanar waveguide (CPW) lines are commonly adopted in MKIDs for the resonators as well as the readout through line. It is therefore of particular interest to characterize the transmission properities of superconducting CPW lines at low temperatures. A cryogenic through-line method based on two cryogenic RF switches is proposed to characterize Nb and TiN superconducting CPW lines. On-chip calibration has been successfully carried out. Detailed results and analysis will be presented.
Microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKIDs) are playing an increasingly role in THz astronomy. Superconducting coplanar waveguide (CPW) lines are commonly adopted in MKIDs for the resonators as well as the readout through line. It is therefore of particular interest to characterize the transmission properities of superconducting CPW lines at low temperatures. A cryogenic through-line method based on two cryogenic RF switches is proposed to characterize Nb and TiN superconducting CPW lines. On-chip calibration has been successfully carried out. Detailed results and analysis will be presented.
We present the RF characterization of 2-µm-wide superconducting coplanar waveguides made of 100-nm-thick niobium (Nb) or niobium nitride (NbN) films fabricated on 200 mm silicon wafers. Measurements of the two-ports S-parameters up to 25 GHz in a 4.7K–14 K temperature range with an added direct current up to 115 mA were done using a cryogenic probe station. With proper RF calibration and de-embedding procedure, both temperature and dc current dependence of the RF superconducting properties are analyzed. We report a kinetic inductance of 0.15 pH/□, a critical current density of 50 MA/cm2, and a critical temperature of 8.9 K for Nb as well as 4.27 pH/□, 3 MA/cm2, and 13.8 K for NbN. A telegraphist transmission line model taking into account the BCS theory has been developed and the comparison with the measurements is discussed.
This article presents a new multiimpedance-state line (MISL) in situ scattering parameter (S-parameter) calibration technique using on-chip superconducting transmission lines at 4 K that enables cryogenic calibration in a fixed signal path without the need for cryogenic switches or a cryogenic probe station. The method uses coplanar waveguide (CPW) models based on various impedance states of niobium (Nb), which has zero dc resistance below 9 K and a monotonically increasing resistance from 10 K to room temperature. The different impedance states are accessed by heating the 4 K stage of a cryostat and injecting up to 245 mA of current into the line. Using these states, we solve for the unknowns in an eight-term error model through a least-squares analysis. We first validate the MISL calibration technique by comparing it with short-open-load-reciprocal (SOLR) calibrated measurements in a cryogenic probe station, finding transmission agreement within 0.2 dB and uncertainty overlap for nearly all frequencies up to 26.5 GHz. We then apply the method to calibrate Nb CPWs with and without embedded Josephson junctions (JJs), using a fixed wire bonded connection, and without the use of cryogenic switches or movable probes. Strong agreement with the CPW models is demonstrated, with uncertainty overlap and differences below 0.1 dB up to 4.6 GHz without JJs and up to 2.4 GHz with JJs; resonances cause interruptions beyond these frequencies.
In terahertz radio astronomy, superconducting coplanar waveguide resonators have been commonly applied in Kinetic Inductance Detectors (KIDs) to measure the absorption of photon energy in the millimeter and submillimeter bands. Here, we present an analysis on the performance of superconducting niobium coplanar waveguides (CPWs). To compute the loss in a superconducting CPW, we have incorporated the complex conductivity developed by Matis and Bardeen based on the superconducting BCS theory, into the CPW loss equation. We have made a comparison between the loss in a CPW at room temperature with that below the critical temperature Tc of the superconductor. It can be observed that at frequencies below the gap frequency fg, the low in the superconducting CPW is significantly lower than that in a normal CPW. Above fg, however, the material loses its superconductivity and the loss in both temperatures becomes comparable. In our analysi, we have also shown that the loss decreases as the gap bewteen the strip and groundplane becomes wider. Hence, with careful design, the loss in a CPW can actually be minimized.
Superconducting microwave resonators are of interest for a wide range of applications, including for their use as microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKIDs) for the detection of faint astrophysical signatures, as well as for quantum computing applications and materials characterization. In this paper, procedures are presented for the fabrication and characterization of thin-film superconducting microwave resonators. The fabrication methodology allows for the realization of superconducting transmission-line resonators with features on both sides of an atomically smooth single-crystal silicon dielectric. This work describes the procedure for the installation of resonator devices into a cryogenic microwave testbed and for cool-down below the superconducting transition temperature. The set-up of the cryogenic microwave testbed allows one to do careful measurements of the complex microwave transmission of these resonator devices, enabling the extraction of the properties of the superconducting lines and dielectric substrate (e.g., internal quality factors, loss and kinetic inductance fractions), which are important for device design and performance.
Superconducting microwave resonators are of interest for a wide range of applications, including for their use as microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKIDs) for the detection of faint astrophysical signatures, as well as for quantum computing applications and materials characterization. In this paper, procedures are presented for the fabrication and characterization of thin-film superconducting microwave resonators. The fabrication methodology allows for the realization of superconducting transmission-line resonators with features on both sides of an atomically smooth single-crystal silicon dielectric. This work describes the procedure for the installation of resonator devices into a cryogenic microwave testbed and for cool-down below the superconducting transition temperature. The set-up of the cryogenic microwave testbed allows one to do careful measurements of the complex microwave transmission of these resonator devices, enabling the extraction of the properties of the superconducting lines and dielectric substrate (e.g., internal quality factors, loss and kinetic inductance fractions), which are important for device design and performance.
Microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKID) are superconducting broadband direct detectors. If a superconducting thin film patterned into a resonator is illuminated with photons, Cooper pairs break up and the kinetic inductance of the film changes. This shifts the resonance frequency downwards and the dissipation of the resonator increases, which can be detected in the phase and amplitude of a transmitted signal. \n \nIn this thesis, a waveguide coupled MKID is designed and simulated. 350 GHz radiation is coupled into a copper waveguide via a horn antenna. A waveguide probe leads the signal onto a 9 µm silicon membrane where it is absorbed in a 40 nm superconducting aluminum film which is the inductive part of a superconducting resonator. The capacitor of the resonator is made of niobium. Two versions of the device are developed, a transmission line resonator and a lumped element resonator design. The new design will enable an accurate understanding of the optical sensitivity of MKIDs and allow comparison of different resonator materials. Since two different resonator types are used, the direct comparison of transmission line and lumped resonators will also be possible. \n \nA measurement setup is developed including an ADR cryostat to cool MKID devices down to below 40 mK. An analog readout system using either a vector network analyzer or an IQ mixer is designed and built. The necessary software to control the ADR, the temperature monitoring, the readout signal generation and detection and the signal acquisition of the setup is also developed. \n \nThe waveguide coupled MKID design is fabricated in our in-house microfabrication laboratory and measured in the new setup. In my measurements, the devices do not show a resonance feature. The VNA and DC measurements are analyzed to determine a plausible hypothesis of the failure. The devices are diagnosed for critical issues during fabrication which will be addressed in a future iteration. \n \nTo verify the measurement setup, a test device of the IRAM NIKA 2 MKID camera is measured and the complete analysis pipeline is exercised. The quasi-particle lifetime in the aluminum thin films is measured and a dark and optical noise equivalent power are determined. The results are within the uncertainty comparable to measurements of IRAM themselves. \n \nA test chip designed in my master thesis that contains eight NbTiN resonators is measured in the new setup and non-linear effects under strong readout power are studied. Parametric amplification and oscillation of a resonator are shown qualitatively.