Measuring non-Gaussian fluctuations through incoherent cooper-pair current

Escape statistics for parameter sweeps through bifurcations

We consider the dynamics of systems undergoing parameter sweeps through bifurcation points in the presence of noise. Of interest here are local codimension-one bifurcations that result in large excursions away from an operating point that is transitioning from stable to unstable during the sweep, since information about these "escape events" can be used for system identification, sensing, and other applications. The analysis is based on stochastic normal forms for the dynamic saddle-node and subcritical pitchfork bifurcations with a time-varying bifurcation parameter and additive noise. The results include formulation and numerical solution for the distribution of escape events in the general case and analytical approximations for delayed bifurcations for which escape occurs well beyond the corresponding quasistatic bifurcation points. These bifurcations result in amplitude jumps encountered during parameter sweeps and are particularly relevant to nano- and microelectromechanical systems, for which noise can play a significant role.

Detection of finite-frequency current moments with a dissipative resonant circuit

We consider the measurement of higher current moments with a dissipative resonant circuit, which is coupled inductively to a mesoscopic device in the coherent regime. Information about the higher current moments is coded in the histograms of the charge on the capacitor plates of the resonant circuit. The role of dissipation is shown to be essential for the measured noise to remain finite. We also identify which combination of current correlators enters the measurement of the third moment. The results are illustrated for a quantum point contact.

Wideband detection of the third moment of shot noise by a hysteretic Josephson junction

We use a hysteretic Josephson junction as an on-chip detector of the third moment of shot noise of a tunnel junction. The detectable bandwidth is determined by the plasma frequency of the detector, which is about 50 GHz in the present experiment. The third moment of shot noise results in a measurable change of the switching rate when reversing polarity of the current through the noise source. We analyze the observed asymmetry assuming adiabatic response of the detector.

Detecting charge noise with a Josephson junction: a problem of thermal escape in presence of non-Gaussian fluctuations

Motivated by several experimental activities to detect charge noise produced by a mesoscopic conductor with a Josephson junction as on-chip detector, the switching rate out of its zero-voltage state is studied. This process is related to the problem of thermal escape in presence of non-Gaussian fluctuations. In the relevant case of weak higher than second order cumulants, an effective Fokker-Planck equation is derived, which is then used to obtain an explicit expression for the escape rate. Specific results for the rate asymmetry due to the third moment of current noise allow to analyze experimental data and to optimize detection circuits.

Superconductor-metal transition in an ultrasmall Josephson junction biased by a noisy voltage source

Shot noise in a voltage source changes the character of the quantum (dissipative) phase transition in an ultrasmall Josephson junction: The superconductor-insulator transition transforms into the superconductor-metal transition. In the metallic phase, the IV curve probes the voltage distribution generated by shot noise, whereas in the superconducting phase, it probes the counting statistics of electrons traversing the noise junction.

Emission and absorption asymmetry in the quantum noise of a Josephson junction

We measure current fluctuations of mesoscopic devices in the quantum regime, when the frequency is of the order of or higher than the applied voltage or temperature. Detection is designed to probe separately the absorption and emission contributions of current fluctuations, i.e. the positive and negative frequencies of the Fourier transformed nonsymmetrized noise correlator. It relies on measuring the quasiparticles photon assisted tunneling current across a superconductor-insulator-superconductor junction (the detector junction) caused by the excess current fluctuations generated by quasiparticles tunneling across a Josephson junction (the source junction). We demonstrate unambiguously that the negative and positive frequency parts of the nonsymmetrized noise correlator are separately detected and that the excess current fluctuations of a voltage biased Josephson junction present a strong asymmetry between emission and absorption.

Shot-noise-driven escape in hysteretic Josephson junctions

We have measured the influence of shot noise on hysteretic Josephson junctions initially in the macroscopic quantum tunneling regime. The escape threshold current into the resistive state decreases monotonically with increasing average current through the scattering conductor, which is another tunnel junction. Escape is predominantly determined by excitation due to the wideband shot noise. This process is equivalent to thermal activation (TA) over the barrier at effective temperatures up to about 4 times the critical temperature of the superconductor. The presented TA model is in excellent agreement with the experimental results.

How to detect the fourth-order cumulant of electrical noise

It is proposed to measure the current noise generated in a mesoscopic conductor by macroscopic quantum tunneling (MQT) in a current biased Josephson junction placed in parallel to the conductor. The theoretical description of this setup takes into account the complete dynamics of detector and noise source. Explicit results are given for the specific case of current fluctuations in an oxide layer tunnel junction, and it is shown how the device allows to extract the fourth-order cumulant of the noise from the MQT data for realistic experimental parameters.