Microwave emission from superconducting vortices in Mo/Si superlattices.

Most of superconductors in a magnetic field are penetrated by a lattice of quantized flux vortices. In the presence of a transport current causing the vortices to cross sample edges, emission of electromagnetic waves is expected due to the continuity of tangential components of the fields at the surface. Yet, such a radiation has not been observed so far due to low radiated power levels and lacking coherence in the vortex motion. Here, we clearly evidence the emission of electromagnetic waves from vortices crossing the layers of a superconductor/insulator Mo/Si superlattice. The emission spectra consist of narrow harmonically related peaks which can be finely tuned in the GHz range by the dc bias current and, coarsely, by the in-plane magnetic field value. Our findings show that superconductor/insulator superlattices can act as dc-tunable microwave generators bridging the frequency gap between conventional radiofrequency oscillators and (sub-)terahertz generators relying upon the Josephson effect.

dc and ac magnetic properties of thin-walled Nb cylinders with and without a row of antidots.

dc and ac magnetic properties of two thin-walled superconducting Nb cylinders with a rectangular cross-section are reported. Magnetization curves and the ac response were studied on as-prepared and patterned samples in magnetic fields parallel to the cylinder axis. A row of micron-sized antidots (holes) was made in the film along the cylinder axis. Avalanche-like jumps of the magnetization are observed for both samples at low temperatures for magnetic fields not only above H c1, but in fields lower than H c1 in the vortex-free region. The positions of the jumps are not reproducible and they change from one experiment to another, resembling vortex lattice instabilities usually observed for magnetic fields larger than H c1. At temperatures above [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] the magnetization curves become smooth for the patterned and the as-prepared samples, respectively. The magnetization curve of a reference planar Nb film in the parallel field geometry does not exhibit jumps in the entire range of accessible temperatures. The ac response was measured in constant and swept dc magnetic field modes. Experiment shows that ac losses at low magnetic fields in a swept field mode are smaller for the patterned sample. For both samples the shapes of the field dependences of losses and the amplitude of the third harmonic are the same in constant and swept field near H c3. This similarity does not exist at low fields in a swept mode.

AC conductivity of a niobium thin film in a swept magnetic field.

We report results of measurements of the ac conductivity of a Nb superconducting thin film in a swept dc magnetic field. In the mixed state the swept dc field creates vortices at the film surface which pass through the film and form the observed ac conductivity. Vortex rate generation does not depend on the value of the dc field and there is a large plateau-like region of dc magnetic fields where the dissipation is approximately constant. A proposed phenomenological model describes quite well the main features of the ac response in these fields, including its dependency on the sweep rate, ac amplitude, frequency, and value of the second and third harmonics.

Anisotropy of the upper critical fields and the paramagnetic Meissner effect in La1.85Sr0.15CuO4 single crystals.

Optimally doped La(1.85)Sr(0.15)CuO(4) single crystals have been investigated by dc and ac magnetic measurements. These crystals have rectangular needle-like shapes with the long needle axis parallel to the crystallographic c axis (c-crystal) or parallel to the basal planes (a-crystal). In both crystals, the temperature dependence of the upper critical fields (H(C2)) and the surface critical field (H(C3)) were measured. The H-T phase diagram is presented. Close to T(C) = 35 K, for the c-crystal, γ(C) = H(C3)(c)/H(C2)(c) = 1.80(2), whereas for the a-crystal the γ(a) = H(C3)(a)/H(C2)(a) = 4.0(2) obtained is much higher than 1.69, predicted by the ideal mathematical model. At low applied dc fields, positive field-cooled branches known as the 'paramagnetic Meissner effect' (PME) are observed; their magnitude is inversely proportional to H. The anisotropic PME is observed in both a- and c-crystals, only when the applied field is along the basal planes. It is speculated that the high γ(a) and the PME are connected to each other.

Surface superconducting states in a yttrium hexaboride single crystal in a tilted magnetic field.

We present the results of an experimental study of the nucleation of superconductivity at the surface of a single-crystal YB(6) in a tilted dc magnetic field. The developed experimental approach allowed us to measure H(c3) at each side of the sample as a function of the angle between the dc magnetic field and the surface. Experiment showed that the ratio H(c3)/H(c2)≈1.28 when the dc field became perpendicular to the surface while the expected value of this ratio is 1. This sharp distinction with theory cannot be ascribed to the surface roughness.