Role of a capping layer on the crystalline structure of Sn thin films grown at cryogenic temperatures on InSb substrates.

Metal deposition with cryogenic cooling is a common technique in the condensed matter community for producing ultra-thin epitaxial superconducting layers on semiconductors. However, a significant challenge arises when these films return to room temperature, as they tend to undergo dewetting. This issue can be mitigated by capping the films with an amorphous layer. In this study, we investigate the influence of differentin situfabricated caps on the structural characteristics of Sn thin films deposited at 80 K on InSb substrates. Regardless of the type of capping, we consistently observe that the films remain smooth upon returning to room temperature and exhibit epitaxy on InSb in the cubic Sn (α-Sn) phase. Notably, we identify a correlation between alumina capping using an electron beam evaporator and an increased presence of tetragonal Sn (ß-Sn) grains. This suggests that heating from the alumina source may induce a partial phase transition in the Sn layer. The existence of theß-Sn phase induces superconducting behavior of the films by percolation effect. This study highlights the potential for tailoring the structural properties of cryogenic Sn thin films throughin situcapping. This development opens avenues for precise control in the production of superconducting Sn films, facilitating their integration into quantum computing platforms.

Sn/InAs Josephson Junctions on Selective Area Grown Nanowires with in Situ Shadowed Superconductor Evaporation.

Superconductor-semiconductor nanowire hybrid structures are useful in fabricating devices for quantum information processing. While selective area growth (SAG) offers the flexibility to grow semiconductor nanowires in arbitrary geometries, in situ evaporation of superconductors ensures pristine superconductor-semiconductor interfaces, resulting in strong induced superconductivity in the semiconducting nanowire. In this work, we used high-aspect-ratio SiOx dielectric walls to in situ evaporate islands of superconductor tin on in-plane InAs SAG nanowires. Our technique enables customization in the designs of such hybrid nanostructures, while simultaneously performing the nanowire and superconductor growth without breaking vacuum. Using this technique, we grew super(S)-normal(N)-super(S), NS, and SNSNS junctions. We performed cryogenic electron transport measurements revealing the presence of gate and field tunable supercurrents. We further measured the superconducting gap and critical fields in the hybrid nanostructures and the crossover from 2e to 1e periodicity in the SNSNS junctions as a proof of the usability of these hybrid nanostructures.

First-Principles Assessment of CdTe as a Tunnel Barrier at the α-Sn/InSb Interface.

Majorana zero modes, with prospective applications in topological quantum computing, are expected to arise in superconductor/semiconductor interfaces, such as ß-Sn and InSb. However, proximity to the superconductor may also adversely affect the semiconductor's local properties. A tunnel barrier inserted at the interface could resolve this issue. We assess the wide band gap semiconductor, CdTe, as a candidate material to mediate the coupling at the lattice-matched interface between α-Sn and InSb. To this end, we use density functional theory (DFT) with Hubbard U corrections, whose values are machine-learned via Bayesian optimization (BO) [ npj Computational Materials 2020, 6, 180]. The results of DFT+U(BO) are validated against angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) experiments for α-Sn and CdTe. For CdTe, the z-unfolding method [ Advanced Quantum Technologies 2022, 5, 2100033] is used to resolve the contributions of different kz values to the ARPES. We then study the band offsets and the penetration depth of metal-induced gap states (MIGS) in bilayer interfaces of InSb/α-Sn, InSb/CdTe, and CdTe/α-Sn, as well as in trilayer interfaces of InSb/CdTe/α-Sn with increasing thickness of CdTe. We find that 16 atomic layers (3.5 nm) of CdTe can serve as a tunnel barrier, effectively shielding the InSb from MIGS from the α-Sn. This may guide the choice of dimensions of the CdTe barrier to mediate the coupling in semiconductor-superconductor devices in future Majorana zero modes experiments.

Kinetic Model and Experiment for Self-Ignition of Triethylaluminum and Triethylborane Droplets in Air.

Triethylaluminum Al(C2H5)3, TEA, and triethylborane, B(C2H5)3, TEB, are transparent, colorless, pyrophoric liquids with boiling points of approximately 190 °C and 95 °C, respectively. Upon contact with ambient air, TEA, TEB, as well as their mixtures and solutions, in hydrocarbon solvents, ignite. They can also violently react with water. TEA and TEB can be used as hypergolic rocket propellants and incendiary compositions. In this manuscript, a novel scheme of the heterogeneous interaction of gaseous oxygen with liquid TEA/TEB microdroplets accompanied by the release of light hydrocarbon radicals into the gas phase is used for calculating the self-ignition of a spatially homogeneous mixture of fuel microdroplets in ambient air at normal pressure and temperature (NPT) conditions. In the primary initiation step, TEA and TEB react with oxygen, producing an ethyl radical, which can initiate an autoxidation chain. The ignition delay is shown to decrease with the decrease in the droplet size. Preliminary experiments on the self-ignition of pulsed and continuous TEA-TEB sprays in ambient air at NPT conditions are used for estimating the Arrhenius parameters of the rate-limiting reaction. Experiments confirm that the self-ignition delay of TEA-TEB sprays decreases with the injection pressure and provide the data for estimating the activation energy of the rate-limiting reaction, which appears to be close to 2 kcal/mol.

Interaction of Shock Waves with Water Saturated by Nonreacting or Reacting Gas Bubbles.

A compressible medium represented by pure water saturated by small nonreactive or reactive gas bubbles can be used for generating a propulsive force in large-, medium-, and small-scale thrusters referred to as a pulsed detonation hydroramjet (PDH), which is a novel device for underwater propulsion. The PDH thrust is produced due to the acceleration of bubbly water (BW) in a water guide by periodic shock waves (SWs) and product gas jets generated by pulsed detonations of a fuel-oxidizer mixture. Theoretically, the PDH thrust is proportional to the operation frequency, which depends on both the SW velocity in BW and pulsed detonation frequency. The studies reported in this manuscript were aimed at exploring two possible directions of the improvement of thruster performances, namely, (1) the replacement of chemically nonreacting gas bubbles by chemically reactive ones, and (2) the increase in the pulsed detonation frequency from tens of hertz to some kilohertz. To better understand the SW-to-BW momentum transfer, the interaction of a single SW and a high-frequency (≈7 kHz) sequence of three SWs with chemically inert or active BW containing bubbles of air or stoichiometric acetylene-oxygen mixture was studied experimentally. Single SWs and SW packages were generated by burning or detonating a gaseous stoichiometric acetylene-oxygen or propane-oxygen mixture and transmitting the arising SWs to BW. The initial volume fraction of gas in BW was varied from 2% to 16% with gas bubbles 1.5-4 mm in diameter. The propagation velocity of SWs in BW ranged from 40 to 580 m/s. In experiments with single SWs in chemically active BW, a detonation-like mode of reaction front propagation ("bubbly quasidetonation") was realized. This mode consisted of a SW followed by the front of bubble explosions and was characterized by a considerably higher propagation velocity as compared to the chemically inert BW. The latter could allow increasing the PDH operation frequency and thrust. Experiments with high-frequency SW packages showed that on the one hand, the individual SWs quickly merged, feeding each other and increasing the BW velocity, but on the other hand, the initial gas content for each successive SW decreased and, accordingly, the SW-to-BW momentum transfer worsened. Estimates showed that for a small-scale water guide 0.5 m long, the optimal pulsed detonation frequency was about 50-60 Hz.

Electronic Structure and Epitaxy of CdTe Shells on InSb Nanowires.

Indium antimonide (InSb) nanowires are used as building blocks for quantum devices because of their unique properties, that is, strong spin-orbit interaction and large Landé g-factor. Integrating InSb nanowires with other materials could potentially unfold novel devices with distinctive functionality. A prominent example is the combination of InSb nanowires with superconductors for the emerging topological particles research. Here, the combination of the II-VI cadmium telluride (CdTe) with the III-V InSb in the form of core-shell (InSb-CdTe) nanowires is investigated and potential applications based on the electronic structure of the InSb-CdTe interface and the epitaxy of CdTe on the InSb nanowires are explored. The electronic structure of the InSb-CdTe interface using density functional theory is determined and a type-I band alignment is extracted with a small conduction band offset ( ⩽0.3 eV). These results indicate the potential application of these shells for surface passivation or as tunnel barriers in combination with superconductors. In terms of structural quality, it is demonstrated that the lattice-matched CdTe can be grown epitaxially on the InSb nanowires without interfacial strain or defects. These shells do not introduce disorder to the InSb nanowires as indicated by the comparable field-effect mobility measured for both uncapped and CdTe-capped nanowires.

Signatures of Andreev Blockade in a Double Quantum Dot Coupled to a Superconductor.

We investigate an electron transport blockade regime in which a spin triplet localized in the path of current is forbidden from entering a spin-singlet superconductor. To stabilize the triplet, a double quantum dot is created electrostatically near a superconducting Al lead in an InAs nanowire. The quantum dot closest to the normal lead exhibits Coulomb diamonds, and the dot closest to the superconducting lead exhibits Andreev bound states and an induced gap. The experimental observations compare favorably to a theoretical model of Andreev blockade, named so because the triplet double dot configuration suppresses Andreev reflections. Observed leakage currents can be accounted for by finite temperature. We observe the predicted quadruple level degeneracy points of high current and a periodic conductance pattern controlled by the occupation of the normal dot. Even-odd transport asymmetry is lifted with increased temperature and magnetic field. This blockade phenomenon can be used to study spin structure of superconductors. It may also find utility in quantum computing devices that use Andreev or Majorana states.

Supercurrent Interference in Few-Mode Nanowire Josephson Junctions.

Junctions created by coupling two superconductors via a semiconductor nanowire in the presence of high magnetic fields are the basis for the potential detection, fusion, and braiding of Majorana bound states. We study NbTiN/InSb nanowire/NbTiN Josephson junctions and find that the dependence of the critical current on the magnetic field exhibits gate-tunable nodes. This is in contrast with a well-known Fraunhofer effect, under which critical current nodes form a regular pattern with a period fixed by the junction area. Based on a realistic numerical model we conclude that the Zeeman effect induced by the magnetic field and the spin-orbit interaction in the nanowire are insufficient to explain the observed evolution of the Josephson effect. We find the interference between the few occupied one-dimensional modes in the nanowire to be the dominant mechanism responsible for the critical current behavior. We also report a strong suppression of critical currents at finite magnetic fields that should be taken into account when designing circuits based on Majorana bound states.

Andreev molecules in semiconductor nanowire double quantum dots.

Chains of quantum dots coupled to superconductors are promising for the realization of the Kitaev model of a topological superconductor. While individual superconducting quantum dots have been explored, control of longer chains requires understanding of interdot coupling. Here, double quantum dots are defined by gate voltages in indium antimonide nanowires. High transparency superconducting niobium titanium nitride contacts are made to each of the dots in order to induce superconductivity, as well as probe electron transport. Andreev bound states induced on each of dots hybridize to define Andreev molecular states. The evolution of these states is studied as a function of charge parity on the dots, and in magnetic field. The experiments are found in agreement with a numerical model.Quantum dots in a nanowire are one possible approach to creating a solid-state quantum simulator. Here, the authors demonstrate the coupling of electronic states in a double quantum dot to form Andreev molecule states; a potential building block for longer chains suitable for quantum simulation.

Experimental phase diagram of zero-bias conductance peaks in superconductor/semiconductor nanowire devices.

Topological superconductivity is an exotic state of matter characterized by spinless p-wave Cooper pairing of electrons and by Majorana zero modes at the edges. The first signature of topological superconductivity is a robust zero-bias peak in tunneling conductance. We perform tunneling experiments on semiconductor nanowires (InSb) coupled to superconductors (NbTiN) and establish the zero-bias peak phase in the space of gate voltage and external magnetic field. Our findings are consistent with calculations for a finite-length topological nanowire and provide means for Majorana manipulation as required for braiding and topological quantum bits.

Formation and electronic properties of InSb nanocrosses.

Signatures of Majorana fermions have recently been reported from measurements on hybrid superconductor-semiconductor nanowire devices. Majorana fermions are predicted to obey special quantum statistics, known as non-Abelian statistics. To probe this requires an exchange operation, in which two Majorana fermions are moved around one another, which requires at least a simple network of nanowires. Here, we report on the synthesis and electrical characterization of crosses of InSb nanowires. The InSb wires grow horizontally on flexible vertical stems, allowing nearby wires to meet and merge. In this way, near-planar single-crystalline nanocrosses are created, which can be measured by four electrical contacts. Our transport measurements show that the favourable properties of the InSb nanowire devices-high carrier mobility and the ability to induce superconductivity--are preserved in the cross devices. Our nanocrosses thus represent a promising system for the exchange of Majorana fermions.

Quantized conductance in an InSb nanowire.

Ballistic one-dimensional transport in semiconductor nanowires plays a central role in creating topological and helical states. The hallmark of such one-dimensional transport is conductance quantization. Here we show conductance quantization in InSb nanowires at nonzero magnetic fields. Conductance plateaus are studied as a function of source-drain bias and magnetic field, enabling extraction of the Landé g factor and the subband spacing.

From InSb nanowires to nanocubes: looking for the sweet spot.

High aspect ratios are highly desired to fully exploit the one-dimensional properties of indium antimonide nanowires. Here we systematically investigate the growth mechanisms and find parameters leading to long and thin nanowires. Variation of the V/III ratio and the nanowire density are found to have the same influence on the "local" growth conditions and can control the InSb shape from thin nanowires to nanocubes. We propose that the V/III ratio controls the droplet composition and the radial growth rate and these parameters determine the nanowire shape. A sweet spot is found for nanowire interdistances around 500 nm leading to aspect ratios up to 35. High electron mobilities up to 3.5 × 10(4) cm(2) V(-1) s(-1) enable the realization of complex spintronic and topological devices.