Clemens Winkelmann

Superconductivity in a single-C60 transistor

Single-molecule transistors have enabled studies of magnetism and other correlated nanoscale behaviour, but superconductivity has not been observed with this approach. It is now shown that superconducting junctions on both sides of a C60 molecule induce superconductivity across the whole device.

Trapping hot quasi-particles in a high-power superconducting electronic cooler

The performance of hybrid superconducting electronic coolers is usually limited by the accumulation of hot quasi-particles in their superconducting leads. This issue is all the more stringent in large-scale and high-power devices, as required by the applications. Introducing a metallic drain connected to the superconducting electrodes via a fine-tuned tunnel barrier, we efficiently remove quasi-particles and obtain electronic cooling from 300mK down to 130mK with a 400pW cooling power. A simple thermal model accounts for the experimental observations.

Etching suspended superconducting tunnel junctions from a multilayer

A method to fabricate large-area superconducting hybrid tunnel junctions with a suspended central normal metal part is presented. The samples are fabricated by combining photo-lithography and chemical etch of a superconductor—insulator—normal metal multilayer. The process involves few fabrication steps, is reliable and produces extremely high-quality tunnel junctions. Under an appropriate voltage bias, a significant electronic cooling is demonstrated. We analyze semi-quantitatively the thermal behavior of a typical device.

Thermal Conductance of a Single-Electron Transistor

We report on combined measurements of heat and charge transport through a single-electron transistor. The device acts as a heat switch actuated by the voltage applied on the gate. The Wiedemann-Franz law for the ratio of heat and charge conductances is found to be systematically violated away from the charge degeneracy points. The observed deviation agrees well with the theoretical expectation. With a large temperature drop between the source and drain, the heat current away from degeneracy deviates from the standard quadratic dependence in the two temperatures.

Superconducting cascade electron refrigerator

The design and operation of an electronic cooler based on a combination of superconducting tunnel junctions is described. The cascade extraction of hot-quasiparticles, which stems from the energy gaps of two different superconductors, allows for a normal metal to be cooled down to about 100 mK starting from a bath temperature of 0.5 K. We discuss the practical implementation, potential performance, and limitations of such a device.

Reversibility Of Superconducting Nb Weak Links Driven By The Proximity Effect In A Quantum Interference Device

We demonstrate the role of the proximity effect in the thermal hysteresis of superconducting constrictions. From the analysis of successive thermal instabilities in the transport characteristics of micron-size superconducting quantum interference devices with a well-controlled geometry, we obtain a complete picture of the different thermal regimes. These determine whether or not the junctions are hysteretic. Below the superconductor critical temperature, the critical current switches from a classical weak-link behavior to one driven by the proximity effect. The associated small amplitude of the critical current makes it robust with respect to the heat generation by phase slips, leading to a nonhysteretic behavior.

Electronic coolers based on superconducting tunnel junctions: fundamentals and applications

Thermo-electric transport at the nano-scale is a rapidly developing topic, in particular in superconductor-based hybrid devices. In this review paper, we first discuss the fundamental principles of electronic cooling in mesoscopic superconducting hybrid structures, the related limitations and applications. We review recent work performed in Grenoble on the effects of Andreev reflection, photonic heat transport, phonon cooling, as well as on an innovative fabrication technique for powerful coolers.

Niobium-based superconducting nano-device fabrication using all-metal suspended masks

We report a novel method for the fabrication of superconducting nano-devices based on niobium. The well-known difficulties of lithographic patterning of high-quality niobium are overcome by replacing the usual organic resist mask by a metallic one. The quality of the fabrication procedure is demonstrated by the realization and characterization of long and narrow superconducting lines and niobium-gold-niobium proximity SQUIDs.

Bolometric calibration of a superfluid 3He detector for Dark Matter search: Direct measurement of the scintillated energy fraction for neutron, electron and muon events

Abstract We report on the calibration of a superfluid 3 He bolometer developed for the search of non-baryonic Dark Matter. Precise thermometry is achieved by the direct measurement of thermal excitations using Vibrating Wire Resonators (VWRs). The heating pulses for calibration were produced by the direct quantum process of quasiparticle generation by other VWRs present. The bolometric calibration factor is analyzed as a function of temperature and excitation level of the sensing VWR. The calibration is compared to bolometric measurements of the nuclear neutron capture reaction and heat depositions by cosmic muons and low energy electrons. The comparison allows a quantitative estimation of the ultra-violet scintillation rate of irradiated helium, demonstrating the possibility of efficient electron recoil event rejection.

Single Quantum Level Electron Turnstile

We report on the realization of a single-electron source, where current is transported through a single-level quantum dot (Q) tunnel coupled to two superconducting leads (S). When driven with an ac gate voltage, the experiment demonstrates electron turnstile operation. Compared to the more conventional superconductor-normal-metal-superconductor turnstile, our superconductor-quantum-dot-superconductor device presents a number of novel properties, including higher immunity to the unavoidable presence of nonequilibrium quasiparticles in superconducting leads. Moreover, we demonstrate its ability to deliver electrons with a very narrow energy distribution.