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The application of a Josephson generator of the terahertz range based on a long superconductor–insulator–superconductor tunnel junction matched with a transmitting antenna and emitting a signal into open space is demonstrated for gas spectroscopy. The generator is used as an active source, the signal of which is absorbed by a sample of a gas mixture in a cell with a length of 60 cm and then recorded by a spectrometer based on a superconductor–insulator–superconductor receiver with a spectral resolution better than 100 kHz. In the experiment, the absorption lines of ammonia and water in the terahertz range were recorded, and the dependence of the spectral characteristics of the absorption lines on the pressure of the gas mixture in a wide range (from 0.005 to 10 mbar) was demonstrated.

The current-voltage characteristics of superconducting tunnel junction (STJ) X-ray detectors were measured in the temperature range from 4.2 to 0.1 K. The freeze-out of the thermal tunneling current was compared between an STJ detector with a traditional Nb/Al/Al2O3/Al/Nb layer structure and a Ti/Nb/Al/Al2O3/Al/Nb/NbN detector whose low-gap Ti film kills the X-ray response of the base electrode. The current decrease and the linear low-temperature I(V) characteristics for the detector with the killed electrode can be qualitatively explained by tunneling current contribu- tions from the subgap states of the Ti film. The data are analyzed on the basis of the proximity theory in the dirty limit.

Superconducting tunnel junction X-rays detectors Ti/Nb/Al/AlOx/Al/Nb/NbN with the Ti/Nb/Al/ killed electrode were studied under irradiation by X-rays photons of different energies produced by the fluorescence method. The nonlinearity of the detector response and the shape of the detector line were analyzed on the basis of the diffusion model taking into account the quasiparticle self-recombination and edge losses.

We study microwave properties of a superconducting tunable coplanar waveguide (CPW). Pairs of Josephson junctions are forming superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs), which shunt the central conductor of the CPW. The Josephson inductance of the SQUIDs is varied in the range of 0.08-0.5 nH by applying an external dc magnetic field. The central conductor of the CPW contains Josephson junctions connected in series that provide extra inductances; the magnetic field controlling the SQUIDs is weak enough not to influence the inductance of the chain of the single junctions. The circuit is designed to have left- and right-handed transmission properties separated by a variable rejection band; the band edges can be tuned by the magnetic field. We present transmission measurements on CPWs based on up to 120 Nb-AlOx-Nb Josephson junctions. At zero magnetic field, we observed no rejection band in the frequency range of 8-11 GHz. When applying the magnetic field, a rejection band between 7 GHz and 9 GHz appears. The experimental data are compared with numerical simulations., 8 pages, 8 figures

We investigate, by experiments and numerical simulations, thermal activation processes of Josephson tunnel junctions in the presence of microwave radiation. When the applied signal resonates with the Josephson plasma frequency oscillations, the switching current may become multi-valued in a temperature range far exceeding the classical to quantum crossover temperature. Plots of the switching currents traced as a function of the applied signal frequency show very good agreement with the functional forms expected from Josephson plasma frequency dependencies on the bias current. Throughout, numerical simulations of the corresponding thermally driven classical Josephson junction model show very good agreement with the experimental data., Comment: 10 pages and 4 figures

Using superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs) as the basic, low-loss elements of thin-film metamaterials has one main advantage: their resonance frequency is easily tunable by applying a weak magnetic field. The downside, however, is a strong sensitivity to stray and inhomogeneous magnetic fields. In this work, we demonstrate that even small magnetic fields from electronic components destroy the collective, resonant behaviour of the SQUID metamaterial. We also show how the effect of these fields can be minimized. As a first step, magnetic shielding decreases any initially present fields, including the earth’s magnetic field. However, further measures such as improvements in the sample geometry have to be taken to avoid the trapping of Abrikosov vortices.