Pair-breaking mechanisms in superconductor--normal-metal--superconductor junctions

Journal Article · Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 1984 · Phys. Rev. B: Condens. Matter; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.30.1260· OSTI ID:6359638

Yang, H C; Finnemore, D K

The critical current density J/sub c/ has been measured for superconductor--normal-metal--superconductor (S-N-S ) junctions over a wide range of temperature and composition in order to determine the depairing effects of magnetic impurities. Junctions, which are in a sandwich geometry with the N layer typically 600 nm thick, show well-defined diffraction patterns indicating that the junctions are of high quality. Below 4.2 K, the temperature dependence of J/sub c/ is found to follow a modified bridge theory based on the work of Makeev et al. (Fiz. Nizk. Temp. 6, 429 (1980) ( Sov. J. Low Temp. Phys. 6, 203 (1980)) ). In this range, the coherence length and order parameter in the superconductor are essentially independent of temperature, and so it is reasonable that the bridge and sandwich geometry results are similar. As the temperature approaches the transition temperature (T/sub c/S) of the superconductor, J/sub c/ was found to be proportional to (1-T/T/sub c/S)/sup 2/ as predicted by de Gennes.

• Research Organization: Ames Laboratory U.S. Department of Energy and Department of Physics, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011
• OSTI ID: 6359638
• Journal Information: Phys. Rev. B: Condens. Matter; (United States), Journal Name: Phys. Rev. B: Condens. Matter; (United States) Vol. 30:3; ISSN PRBMD
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

420201* -- Engineering-- Cryogenic Equipment & Devices
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ALLOYS
ALUMINIUM ALLOYS
COHERENCE LENGTH
CRITICAL CURRENT
CURRENTS
DATA
DIMENSIONS
ELECTRIC CURRENTS
ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT
ELEMENTS
EQUIPMENT
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
FILMS
FLUXMETERS
HIGH VACUUM
INFORMATION
INTERACTIONS
JUNCTIONS
LEAD
LENGTH
MANGANESE ALLOYS
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
METALS
MICROWAVE EQUIPMENT
NUMERICAL DATA
ORDER PARAMETERS
PAIRING INTERACTIONS
SILVER ALLOYS
SQUID DEVICES
SUPERCONDUCTING DEVICES
SUPERCONDUCTING JUNCTIONS
SUPERCONDUCTORS
TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE
TRANSPORT THEORY
TYPE-II SUPERCONDUCTORS
ULTRALOW TEMPERATURE