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Gleb Finkelstein

Publications and source records attributed to Gleb Finkelstein.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Same-spin Andreev reflections in the quantum Hall regime: the role of loss

The interfaces of superconductors and topological materials hold promise for realizing exotic states and excitations. An important example is provided by the chiral Andreev edge states (CAES), which are formed at interfaces between quantum Hall (QH) states and superconductors (SC). CAES combine electron and hole amplitudes which are hybridized via Andreev reflections. This study explores the spin properties of the CAES through selective spin filtering of the QH edge channels. We find robust evidence of spin-flips accompanying the Andreev processes: electrons can be reflected from the superconductor as holes in the same spin channel. We demonstrate that the distribution of the reflection probabilities is exponential and then use random matrix theory to account for this observation. Finally, we observe Andreev reflections in the spin-polarized {\nu} = 1 case, which is enabled by particle loss. Our findings shed light on the mechanism underlying Andreev reflections of spin-polarized chiral states. They also demonstrate the importance of considering non-Hermiticity when constructing topological superconductors in hybrid materials.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Vortex Tunneling and Critical State in an Oxide Heterostructure

Two-dimensional superconductors offer an excellent platform for the study of vortex matter due to their low superfluid stiffness and inability to effectively screen applied magnetic fields. Here we explore vortices in a two-dimensional superconductor formed at the surface of the complex oxide KTaO$_3$. Multiple regimes of vortex-mediated transport are identified and studied, revealing switching behaviour attributed to nucleation of individual vortices. Analysis of this regime allows us to identify the quantum tunneling of vortices, which transitions to thermally activated behaviour at elevated temperatures. Magnetic field dependence reveals rich histograms of the switching currents which we attribute to different configurations of pinned vortices.

cond-mat.supr-con

Metallic island array as synthetic quantum matter: fractionalized entropy and thermal transport

The surprisingly rich physics of a single Coulomb-blockaded metallic island, when coupled to quantum Hall edge channels, is now well established -- giving rise to charge fractionalization and multi-channel quantum impurity behavior. Here, we show that qualitatively new physics emerges in arrays of such elements. We consider a 1D chain of $N$ metallic islands, focusing on thermodynamic signatures such as quantized entropy and anomalous thermal conductance. Universal and robust behavior emerges for energy scales smaller than the charging energy of the islands. In particular, we demonstrate that for the bulk filling factor of $\nu=1$, the islands could support a finite heat flow without temperature difference between them. Upon pinching the array with a quantum point contact, we predict an entropy change that scales with the number of islands as $\Delta S = \frac{1}{2}k_B \log (N+1)$, which can be measured using charge detection. This fractional entropy suggests the emergence of a novel type of excitations in the array.

cond-mat.str-el

Thermoelectric effect at the quantum Hall-superconductor interface

The interfaces of quantum Hall insulators with superconductors have emerged as a promising platform to realise interesting physics that may be relevant for topologically protected quantum computing. However, these interfaces can host other effects which obscure the detection of the desired excitations. Here we present measurements of the thermoelectric effect at the quantum Hall-superconductor interface. We explain the heat transport by considering the formation of a hotspot at the interface, which results in a non-equilibrium distribution of electrons that can propagate across the superconductor through vortex cores. The observed thermoelectric effect results in a voltage which changes sign on quantum Hall plateaus and responds to the rearrangement of vortices in the wire. These observations highlight the complex interplay of thermal and charge phenomena at the quantum Hall -- superconductor interfaces and should be considered when interpreting transport measurements in similar systems.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Superconductivity in spin-orbit coupled BaBi$_3$ formed by in situ reduction of bismuthate films

Oxygen-scavenging at oxide heterointerfaces has emerged as a powerful route for stabilizing metastable phases that exhibit interesting phenomena, including high-mobility two-dimensional electron gases and high T$_{c}$ superconductivity. We investigate structural and chemical interactions at the heterointerface formed between Al or Eu and the charged-ordered insulator, BaBiO$_3$, leading to emergent superconductivity at 6 K. A combination of X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy measurements shows that oxygen scavenging by the Eu and Al adlayers leads to the formation of superconducting intermetallic BaBi$_3$ in nominal Eu/BaBiO$_3$ and Al/BaBiO$_3$ bilayers. Anisotropic magnetotransport measurements and current-voltage signatures of quasi two-dimensional superconductivity are observed. The mechanisms behind quasi-two-dimensional superconductivity and the role of disorder remain to be clarified. These findings highlight the potential for the use of in situ reduction of bismuthate heterostructures as a platform for stabilizing materials with exotic functional properties. Additionally, the strong spin-orbit coupling at the Bi sites may pave the way for the realization of high T$_{c}$ topological superconductivity.

cond-mat.supr-con

Electrostatic control of quantum phases in KTaO3-based planar constrictions

Two-dimensional electron gases (2DEGs) formed at complex oxide interfaces offer a unique platform to engineer quantum nanostructures. However, scalable fabrication of locally addressable devices in these materials remains challenging. Here, we demonstrate an efficient fabrication approach by patterning narrow constrictions in a superconducting KTaO3-based heterostructure. The constrictions are individually tunable via the coplanar side gates formed within the same 2DEG plane. Our technique leverages the high dielectric permittivity of KTaO3 (epsilon_r ~ 5000) to achieve strong electrostatic modulation of the superconducting 2DEG. Transport measurements through the constriction reveal a range of transport regimes: Within the superconducting state, we demonstrate efficient modulation of the critical current and Berezinskii Kosterlitz Thouless (BKT) transition temperature at the weak link. Further tuning of the gate voltage reveals an unexpectedly regular Coulomb blockade pattern. All of these states are achievable with a side gate voltage |V_SG| < 1 V. The fabrication process is scalable and versatile, enabling a platform both to make superconducting field-effect transistors and to study a wide array of physical phenomena present at complex oxide interfaces.

cond-mat.supr-con

Fermi Velocity Dependent Critical Current in Ballistic Bilayer Graphene Josephson Junctions

We perform transport measurements on proximitized, ballistic, bilayer graphene Josephson junctions (BGJJs) in the intermediate-to-long junction regime ($L>\xi$). We measure the device's differential resistance as a function of bias current and gate voltage for a range of different temperatures. The extracted critical current $I_{C}$ follows an exponential trend with temperature: $ \exp(-k_{B} T/ \delta E)$. Here $\delta E = \hbar \nu_F /2\pi L $: an expected trend for intermediate-to-long junctions. From $\delta E$, we determine the Fermi velocity of the bilayer graphene, which is found to increase with gate voltage. Simultaneously, we show the carrier density dependence of $\delta E$, which is attributed to the quadratic dispersion of bilayer graphene. This is in contrast to single layer graphene Josephson junctions, where $\delta E$ and the Fermi velocity are independent of the carrier density. The carrier density dependence in BGJJs allows for additional tuning parameters in graphene-based Josephson Junction devices.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Multiplet Supercurrents in a Josephson Circuit

Multiterminal Josephson junctions are a promising platform to host synthetic topological phases of matter and Floquet states. However, the energy scales governing topological protection in these devices are on the order of the spacing between Andreev bound states. Recent theories suggest that similar phenomena may instead be explored in circuits composed of two-terminal Josephson junctions, allowing for the topological protection to be controlled by the comparatively large Josephson energy. Here, we explore a Josephson circuit, in which three superconducting electrodes are connected through Josephson junctions to a common superconducting island. We demonstrate the dynamic generation of multiplet resonances, which have previously been observed in multiterminal Josephson junctions. The multiplets are found to be robust to elevated temperatures and are confirmed by exhibiting the expected Shapiro step quantization under a microwave drive. We also find an unexpected novel supercurrent, which couples a pair of contacts that are both voltage-biased with respect to the common superconducting island. We show that this supercurrent results from synchronization of the phase dynamics and pose the question whether it should also carry a topological contribution.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Thermal properties of the superconductor-quantum Hall interfaces

An important route of engineering topological states and excitations is to combine superconductors (SC) with the quantum Hall (QH) effect, and over the past decade, significant progress has been made in this direction. While typical measurements of these states focus on electronic properties, little attention has been paid to the accompanying thermal responses. Here, we examine the thermal properties of the interface between a type-II superconducting electrodes and graphene in the QH regime. We use the thermal noise measurement to probe the local electron temperature of the biased interface. Surprisingly, the measured temperature raise indicates that the superconductor provides a significant thermal conductivity, which is linear in temperature. This suggests electronic heat transport and may be unexpected, because the number of the quasiparticles in the superconductor should be exponentially suppressed. Instead, we attribute the measured electronic heat conductivity to the overlap of the normal states in the vortex cores.

cond-mat.supr-con

Non-local transport measurements in hybrid quantum Hall - superconducting devices

There has been a growing interest in hybrid quantum Hall (QH) superconductor devices, driven by the prospect to realize exotic ground states and excitations with non-abelian exchange statistics. While the existing experiments clearly demonstrate Andreev coupling between the edge states and the superconductors, the question remains whether the quantum coherence could propagate between several superconducting contacts via chiral channels. To answer this question, we have first extended the Landauer-B\"uttiker (LB) formalism to samples with one superconducting contact and found a remarkable agreement within a series of measurements related to each other via LB-type formulae. We have then switched to the case of multiple superconducting contacts, and found that we can describe the measurements self-consistently if we neglect the superconducting phase coherence between multiple contacts. We interpret this result as a negative answer to the question posed above: the phase correlations between multiple superconducting contacts are not established via micron-long quantum Hall edge states. Looking forward, our approach may find applications in the broader field of topological superconductivity and proximal structures. Possible violations of the self-consistency tests presented here may be used as an indication that superconducting phase coherence is induced in the quantum Hall edges.

cond-mat.supr-con

Noise-induced stabilization of dynamical states with broken time-reversal symmetry

Under a high frequency drive, Josephson junctions demonstrate "Shapiro steps" of quantized voltage. These are dynamically stabilized states, in which the phase across the junction locks to the external drive. We explore the stochastic switching between two symmetric steps at $\frac{\hbar\omega}{2e}$ and $-\frac{\hbar\omega}{2e}$. Surprisingly, the switching rate exhibits a pronounced non-monotonicity as a function of temperature, violating the general expectation that transitions should become faster with temperature. We explain this behavior by realizing that the system retains memory of the dynamic state from which it is switching, thereby breaking the conventional simplifying assumptions about separations of time scales.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Loss and decoherence at the quantum Hall - superconductor interface

We perform a systematic study of Andreev conversion at the interface between a superconductor and graphene in the quantum Hall (QH) regime. We find that the probability of Andreev conversion from electrons to holes follows an unexpected but clear trend: the dependencies on temperature and magnetic field are nearly decoupled. We discuss these trends and the role of the superconducting vortices, whose normal cores could both absorb and dephase the individual electrons in a QH edge. Our study may pave the road to engineering future generation of hybrid devices for exploiting superconductivity proximity in chiral channels.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Non-Reciprocal Supercurrents in a Field-Free Graphene Josephson Triode

Superconducting diodes are proposed non-reciprocal circuit elements that should exhibit non-dissipative transport in one direction while being resistive in the opposite direction. Multiple examples of such devices have emerged in the past couple of years, however their efficiency is typically limited, and most of them require magnetic field to function. Here we present a device achieving efficiencies upwards of 90% while operating at zero field. Our samples consist of a network of three graphene Josephson junctions linked by a common superconducting island, to which we refer as a Josephson triode. The triode is tuned by applying a control current to one of the contacts, thereby breaking the time-reversal symmetry of the current flow. The triode's utility is demonstrated by rectifying a small (tens of nA amplitude) applied square wave. We speculate that devices of this type could be realistically employed in the modern quantum circuits.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Graphene-based quantum Hall interferometer with self-aligned side gates

The vanishing band gap of graphene has long presented challenges for making high-quality quantum point contacts (QPCs) -- the partially transparent p-n interfaces introduced by conventional split-gates tend to short the QPC. This complication has hindered the fabrication of graphene quantum Hall Fabry-P\'erot interferometers, until recent advances have allowed split-gate QPCs to operate utilizing the highly resistive $\nu=0$ state. Here, we present a simple recipe to fabricate QPCs by etching a narrow trench in the graphene sheet to separate the conducting channel from self-aligned graphene side gates. We demonstrate operation of the individual QPCs in the quantum Hall regime, and further utilize these QPCs to create and study a quantum Hall interferometer.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Dynamical Stabilization of Multiplet Supercurrents in Multi-terminal Josephson Junctions

The dynamical properties of multi-terminal Josephson junctions have recently attracted interest, driven by the promise of new insights into synthetic topological phases of matter and Floquet states. This effort has culminated in the discovery of Cooper multiplets, in which the splitting of a Cooper pair is enabled via a series of Andreev reflections that entangle four (or more) electrons. In this text, we show conclusively that multiplet resonances can also emerge as a consequence of the three terminal circuit model. The supercurrent appears due to the correlated phase dynamics at values that correspond to the multiplet condition $nV_1 = -mV_2$ of applied bias. The emergence of multiplet resonances is seen in i) a nanofabricated three-terminal graphene Josephson junction, ii) an analog three terminal Josephson junction circuit, and iii) a circuit simulation. The mechanism which stabilizes the state of the system under those conditions is purely dynamical, and a close analog to Kapitza's inverted pendulum problem. We describe parameter considerations that best optimize the detection of the multiplet lines both for design of future devices. Further, these supercurrents have a classically robust $\cos2\phi$ energy contribution, which can be used to engineer qubits based on higher harmonics.

cond-mat.mes-hall

The Multi-terminal Inverse AC Josephson Effect

When a Josephson junction is exposed to microwave radiation, it undergoes the inverse AC Josephson effect - the phase of the junction locks to the drive frequency. As a result, the I-V curves of the junction acquire "Shapiro steps" of quantized voltage. If the junction has three or more superconducting contacts, coupling between different pairs of terminals must be taken into account and the state of the junction evolves in a phase space of higher dimensionality. Here, we study the multi-terminal inverse AC Josephson effect in a graphene sample with three superconducting terminals. We observe robust fractional Shapiro steps and correlated switching events, which can only be explained by considering the device as a completely connected Josephson network. We successfully simulate the observed behaviors using a modified two-dimensional RCSJ model. Our results suggest multi-terminal Josephson junctions are a playground to study highly-connected nonlinear networks with novel topologies.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Interference of chiral Andreev edge states

The search for topological excitations such as Majorana fermions has spurred interest in the boundaries between distinct quantum states. Here, we explore an interface between two prototypical phases of electrons with conceptually different ground states: the integer quantum Hall insulator and the s-wave superconductor. We find clear signatures of hybridized electron and hole states similar to chiral Majorana fermions, to which we refer as chiral Andreev edge states (CAES). They propagate along the interface in the direction determined by magnetic field and their interference can turn an incoming electron into an outgoing electron or a hole, depending on the phase accumulated by the CAES along their path. Our results demonstrate that these excitations can propagate and interfere over a significant length, opening future possibilities for their coherent manipulation.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Full control of quantum Hall supercurrent in a side gated graphene Josephson junction

We present a study of a graphene-based Josephson junction with dedicated side gates carved from the same sheet of graphene as the junction itself. These side gates are highly efficient, and allow us to modulate carrier density along either edge of the junction in a wide range. In particular, in magnetic fields in the $1-2$ Tesla range, we are able to populate the next Landau level, resulting in Hall plateaus with conductance that differs from the bulk filling factor. When counter-propagating quantum Hall edge states are introduced along either edge, we observe supercurrent localized along that edge of the junction. Here we study these supercurrents as a function of magnetic field and carrier density.

cond-mat.mes-hall