THz optical beat-note detection with a fast superconducting hot electron bolometer operating up to 31†GHz.

We study the performance of a hot-electron bolometer (HEB) operating at THz frequencies based on superconducting niobium nitride films. We report on the voltage response of the detector over a large electrical detection bandwidth carried out with different THz sources. We show that the impulse response of the fully packaged HEB at 7.5 K has a 3 dB cutoff around 2 GHz. Remarkably, detection capability is still observed above 30 GHz in an heterodyne beating experiment using a THz quantum cascade laser frequency comb. Additionally, the HEB sensitivity has been evaluated and an optical noise equivalent power NEP of 0.8 pW/√H z has been measured at 1 MHz.

Sublingual immunotherapy: from safety to mechanism of action.

Allergen specific immunotherapy is an important option for the treatment of respiratory allergy and its clinical efficacy has been clearly demonstrated by several studies. However, the injective route of administration and the possibility of severe side effects has limited its use in children and led to the introduction of new forms of administration. Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) has proven to be an effective and safe treatment for respiratory allergy. However, its mechanism of action is still debated. Pharmacokinetic studies showed that, differently from nasal mucosa, allergen extracts administered by SLIT are not immediately adsorbed but are long retained before being drained to local lymph nodes. This difference may be responsible of the absence of severe side effects and instead of short-lasting local symptoms. Studies by biopsies of the oral mucosa should greatly help in defining the presence and the role of cells involved in the mechanisms of oral tolerance.

Characterization of anomalous pair currents in Josephson junction networks.

Measurements performed on superconductive networks shaped in the form of planar graphs display anomalously large currents when specific branches are biased. The temperature dependences of these currents evidence that their origin is due to Cooper pair hopping through the Josephson junctions connecting the superconductive islands of the array. The experimental data are discussed in terms of theoretical models which predict, for the system under consideration, an inhomogeneous Cooper pair distribution on the superconductive islands of the network as a consequence of a Bose-Einstein condensation phenomenon.

Microwave-induced thermal escape in Josephson junctions.

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 multivalued 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.