Abrikosov vortex motion and elementary pinning force in a SNS Josephson junction

Thesis/Dissertation · Thu Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1987

OSTI ID:7002077

Hyun, O

Procedures have been developed to determine the location of a single Abrikosov vortex in a Superconductor - Normal metal - Superconductor (SNS) Josephson junction and study its motion under the influence of a Lorentz force. A vortex in a SNS junction generates characteristic magnetic field inside the junction and this field, in turn, induces a specified phase across the junction. This phase caused by the vortex changes the critical current characteristics of the junction, that then can be used to locate the vortex inside the junction. A single vortex was successfully trapped in the junction by the field cooling process and the location was determined by the diffraction pattern. Motion of the vortex was induced by the transport current, I/sub p/, and the vortex was found to move in discrete jumps. By tracing the vortex after successive depinning events, many pinning centers could be identified. From the minimum depinning current, the elementary pinning force associated with an individual pinning site of the Pb - Bi(4%) superconducting layer was measured. The force is asymmetric and different from one pinning site to another. For the given SNS junction, the pinning force of a pinning center is dominant over all other forces associated with the vortex in the junction.

• Research Organization: Iowa State Univ. of Science and Technology, Ames (USA)
• OSTI ID: 7002077
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

420201* -- Engineering-- Cryogenic Equipment & Devices
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ABRIKOSOV THEORY
CRITICAL CURRENT
CURRENTS
ELECTRIC CURRENTS
JOSEPHSON EFFECT
JUNCTIONS
MAGNETIC FLUX
SUPERCONDUCTING JUNCTIONS
VORTICES