Alternating-Bias Assisted Annealing of Amorphous Oxide Tunnel Junctions

Alternating-Bias Assisted Annealing of Amorphous Oxide Tunnel Junctions

August 19, 2024 | David P. Pappas, Mark Field, Cameron J. Kopas, Joel A. Howard, Xiqiao Wang, Ella Lachman, Jinsu Oh, Lin Zhou, Alysson Gold, Gregory M. Stiehl, Kameshwar Yadavalli, Eyob A. Sete, Andrew Bestwick, Matthew J. Kramer, and Josh Y. Mutus
The paper presents a transformative technique called Alternating-Bias Assisted Annealing (ABAA) to control the electrical properties of aluminum-oxide tunnel junctions, which are crucial for superconducting quantum bits. The technique involves applying low-voltage alternating biases to the junctions, achieving resistance tuning of over 70%. This method improves coherence and reduces defects in the junctions, making them more uniform and amorphous. The effectiveness of ABAA is demonstrated through experiments on superconducting qubits, showing significant improvements in critical current and frequency tuning. Transmission electron microscopy reveals that the treated junctions have a more uniform distribution of alumina coordination, indicating enhanced atomic ordering and reduced defect density. The technique is expected to enhance the scalability and performance of quantum devices and other ionic amorphous materials-based devices.The paper presents a transformative technique called Alternating-Bias Assisted Annealing (ABAA) to control the electrical properties of aluminum-oxide tunnel junctions, which are crucial for superconducting quantum bits. The technique involves applying low-voltage alternating biases to the junctions, achieving resistance tuning of over 70%. This method improves coherence and reduces defects in the junctions, making them more uniform and amorphous. The effectiveness of ABAA is demonstrated through experiments on superconducting qubits, showing significant improvements in critical current and frequency tuning. Transmission electron microscopy reveals that the treated junctions have a more uniform distribution of alumina coordination, indicating enhanced atomic ordering and reduced defect density. The technique is expected to enhance the scalability and performance of quantum devices and other ionic amorphous materials-based devices.
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