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IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity

Microwave Switch Architecture for Superconducting Integrated Circuits Using Magnetic Field-Tunable Josephson Junctions

A. L. Graninger, J. M. Cochran, Aaron A. Pesetski, Joel Strand, R. E. Zimmerman, N. L. Mungo, C. H. Smith, M. Lilly

Published Apr 20, 2023• 6 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We report on the design, fabrication, and measurement of a low-temperature microwave switch architecture that can be fully integrated on chip using single Josephson junctions and superconducting bias lines. The basic switching element used is a reflective single-pole-single-throw switch that is realized by tuning the critical current of a single Josephson junction by way of a local flux bias. A single-pole-single-throw switch is demonstrated at 4.2 K to have anon/offratio in excess of 20 dB up to 12 GHz. This element is then incorporated into the design of a single-pole-double-throw switch that exhibits anon/offratio above 20 dB up to 10 GHz. The switches require no intrinsic power dissipation in either state, and their performance was verified for input powers of$-$100 to$-$60 dBm. S-parameter simulations using a simple lumped element model are in good agreement with the experimental data, allowing for the design to be extended to larger switch architectures.

DOI
10.1109/tasc.2023.3268547

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The authors report on the design and measurement of a reflective single-pole single-throw microwave switch with no internal power dissipation, based on a superconducting circuit containing a single Josephson junction. The data demonstrate the switch operation with 2 GHz instantaneous bandwidth centered at 10 GHz, low insertion loss, and better than 20 dB on/off ratio. The switch's measured performance agrees well with simulations for input powers up to −100 dBm. An extension of the demonstrated circuit to implement a single-pole double-throw switch is shown in simulation.
We demonstrate a lumped-element Josephson parametric amplifier, using a single-ended design that includes an on-chip, high-bandwidth flux bias line. The amplifier can be pumped into its region of parametric gain through either the input port or through the flux bias line. Broadband amplification is achieved at a tunable frequency ω/2π between 5 and 7 GHz with quantum-limited noise performance, a gain-bandwidth product greater than 500 MHz, and an input saturation power in excess of −120 dBm. The bias line allows fast frequency tuning of the amplifier, with variations of hundreds of MHz over time scales shorter than 10 ns.
Broadband and low-loss superconducting switches can facilitate large-scale quantum information processors and cryogenic detectors by dynamically reconfiguring the connectivity of their circuits. The time dependent connectivity is enabled by the nonlinearity of lossless Josephson junctions, which are often wired into superconducting loops to be controlled by magnetic flux. However, this approach needs a power-consuming constant flux bias and dynamic flux actuation, both of which are hard to isolate from other switches or flux sensitive elements, limiting their integration density. Here, we design and characterize a microwave switch that implements a persistent current bias and direct current actuation to reduce static power consumption, actuation energy and potential crosstalk to other devices. We show that persistent current associated with tens of flux quanta is stable and long-lived, reducing the need for on-the-fly tuning. We further demonstrate that our switch has desirable performance for superconducting-circuit-based quantum information processing, including an off mode with more than 20 dB isolation comparable to commercial ferrite isolators, power handling larger than 100 pW sufficient for resonator readout tones and amplifier pumps, and modulation bandwidth broader than 600 MHz useful for multiplexing schemes.
Abstract Broadband and low-loss superconducting switches can facilitate large-scale quantum information processors and cryogenic detectors by dynamically reconfiguring the connectivity of their circuits. The time dependent connectivity is enabled by the nonlinearity of lossless Josephson junctions, which are often wired into superconducting loops to be controlled by magnetic flux. However, this approach needs a power-consuming constant flux bias and dynamic flux actuation, both of which are hard to isolate from other switches or flux sensitive elements, limiting their integration density. Here, we design and characterize a microwave switch that implements a persistent current bias and direct current actuation to reduce static power consumption, actuation energy and potential crosstalk to other devices. We show that persistent current associated with tens of flux quanta is stable and long-lived, reducing the need for on-the-fly tuning. We further demonstrate that our switch has desirable performance for superconducting-circuit-based quantum information processing, including an off mode with more than 20 dB isolation comparable to commercial ferrite isolators, power handling larger than 100 pW sufficient for resonator readout tones and amplifier pumps, and modulation bandwidth broader than 600 MHz useful for multiplexing schemes.
Variable microwave-frequency couplers are highly useful components in classical communication systems and likely will play an important role in quantum communication applications. Conventional semiconductor-based microwave couplers have been used with superconducting quantum circuits, enabling, for example, the in situ measurements of multiple devices via a common readout chain. However, the semiconducting elements are lossy and furthermore dissipate energy when switched, making them unsuitable for cryogenic applications requiring rapid, repeated switching. Superconducting Josephson junction-based couplers can be designed for dissipation-free operation with fast switching and are easily integrated with superconducting quantum circuits. These enable on-chip, quantum-coherent routing of microwave photons, providing an appealing alternative to semiconductor switches. Here, we present and characterize a chip-based broadband microwave variable coupler, tunable over 4–8 GHz with over 1.5 GHz instantaneous bandwidth, based on the superconducting quantum interference device with two parallel Josephson junctions. The coupler is dissipation-free and features large on-off ratios in excess of 40 dB, and the coupling can be changed in about 10 ns. The simple design presented here can be readily integrated with superconducting qubit circuits and can be easily generalized to realize a four- or more port device.
We report on the investigation of the effects of the nonlinear inductance of huge Josephson junction arrays on high-quality RF circuits. The inductance of a single junction is far too small for use in many RF applications; however, Josephson junction stacks and especially intrinsic Josephson junctions in crystalline-layered superconductors open new opportunities. The stack inductance can be altered by changing a DC Josephson current either using an external bias current or an external magnetic field applied to a closed superconducting loop containing two stacks connected in parallel. Using stacks of Josephson junctions in the LC resonators, a tunable 4-pole, 15 MHz band-pass filter with a centre frequency at 1.1 GHz was designed. The filter was simulated in the time domain and the response was converted to the frequency domain. It was found that using an input power level of −62 dBm, corresponding to 0.5% of the junctions' critical current, a linear approximation for the stack nonlinear inductance can be used. By changing the applied magnetic field, a tuning range of 20% was demonstrated with a tuning speed of 2 µs or better. An estimate of the losses is also given. In addition, power handling up to −26 dBm is reported using increasing circuit complexity.