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Charaev I, Batson EK, Cherednichenko S, Reidy K, Drakinskiy V, Yu Y, Lara-Avila S, Thomsen JD, Colangelo M, Incalza F, Ilin K, Schilling A, Berggren KK. Single-photon detection using large-scale high-temperature MgB 2 sensors at 20 K. Nat Commun 2024; 15:3973. [PMID: 38729944 PMCID: PMC11087534 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47353-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2023] [Accepted: 03/28/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Ultra-fast single-photon detectors with high current density and operating temperature can benefit space and ground applications, including quantum optical communication systems, lightweight cryogenics for space crafts, and medical use. Here we demonstrate magnesium diboride (MgB2) thin-film superconducting microwires capable of single-photon detection at 1.55 μm optical wavelength. We used helium ions to alter the properties of MgB2, resulting in microwire-based detectors exhibiting single-photon sensitivity across a broad temperature range of up to 20 K, and detection efficiency saturation for 1 μm wide microwires at 3.7 K. Linearity of detection rate vs incident power was preserved up to at least 100 Mcps. Despite the large active area of up to 400 × 400 μm2, the reset time was found to be as low as ~ 1 ns. Our research provides possibilities for breaking the operating temperature limit and maximum single-pixel count rate, expanding the detector area, and raises inquiries about the fundamental mechanisms of single-photon detection in high-critical-temperature superconductors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilya Charaev
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA.
- University of Zurich, Zurich, 8057, Switzerland.
| | - Emma K Batson
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Sergey Cherednichenko
- Department of Microtechnology and Nanoscience, Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg, SE-41296, Sweden.
| | - Kate Reidy
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Vladimir Drakinskiy
- Department of Microtechnology and Nanoscience, Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg, SE-41296, Sweden
| | - Yang Yu
- Raith America, Inc., 300 Jordan Road, Troy, NY, 12180, USA
| | - Samuel Lara-Avila
- Department of Microtechnology and Nanoscience, Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg, SE-41296, Sweden
| | | | - Marco Colangelo
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | | | - Konstantin Ilin
- Institute of Micro- and Nanoelectronic Systems, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), 76187, Karlsruhe, Germany
| | | | - Karl K Berggren
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA.
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McNaughton B, Pinto N, Perali A, Milošević MV. Causes and Consequences of Ordering and Dynamic Phases of Confined Vortex Rows in Superconducting Nanostripes. NANOMATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 12:4043. [PMID: 36432329 PMCID: PMC9699494 DOI: 10.3390/nano12224043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2022] [Revised: 11/14/2022] [Accepted: 11/15/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the behaviour of vortices under nanoscale confinement in superconducting circuits is important for the development of superconducting electronics and quantum technologies. Using numerical simulations based on the Ginzburg-Landau theory for non-homogeneous superconductivity in the presence of magnetic fields, we detail how lateral confinement organises vortices in a long superconducting nanostripe, presenting a phase diagram of vortex configurations as a function of the stripe width and magnetic field. We discuss why the average vortex density is reduced and reveal that confinement influences vortex dynamics in the dissipative regime under sourced electrical current, mapping out transitions between asynchronous and synchronous vortex rows crossing the nanostripe as the current is varied. Synchronous crossings are of particular interest, since they cause single-mode modulations in the voltage drop along the stripe in a high (typically GHz to THz) frequency range.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin McNaughton
- School of Science and Technology, Physics Division, University of Camerino, 62032 Camerino, Italy
- Department of Physics, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, B-2020 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Nicola Pinto
- School of Science and Technology, Physics Division, University of Camerino, 62032 Camerino, Italy
- Advanced Materials Metrology and Life Science Division, INRiM (Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica), Strade delle Cacce 91, 10135 Turin, Italy
| | - Andrea Perali
- School of Pharmacy, Physics Unit, University of Camerino, 62032 Camerino, Italy
| | - Milorad V. Milošević
- Department of Physics, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, B-2020 Antwerp, Belgium
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Supercurrent Induced by Chiral Coupling in Multiferroic/Superconductor Nanostructures. NANOMATERIALS 2021; 11:nano11010184. [PMID: 33450962 PMCID: PMC7828389 DOI: 10.3390/nano11010184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2020] [Revised: 12/29/2020] [Accepted: 01/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
We study the transport and the superconducting dynamics in a layer of type II superconductor (SC) with a normal top layer that hosts a helical magnetic ordering that gives rise to spin-current-driven ferroelectric polarization. Proximity effects akin to this heterostructure result in an anisotropic supercurrent transport and modify the dynamic properties of vortices in the SC. The vortices can be acted upon and controlled by electric gating or other means that couple to the spin ordering in the top layer, which, in turn, alter the superconducting/helical magnet coupling characteristics. We demonstrate, using the time dependent Ginzburg-Landau approach, how the spin helicity of the top layer can be utilized for pinning and guiding the vortices in the superconducting layer.
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