Resolving thermoelectric "paradox" in superconductors

Effect of Impurity Scattering on Percolation of Bosonic Islands and Superconductivity in Fe Implanted NbN Thin Films

A reentrant temperature dependence of the thermoresistivity ρxx(T) between an onset local superconducting ordering temperature Tloconset and a global superconducting transition at T=Tglooffset has been reported in disordered conventional 3-dimensional (3D) superconductors. The disorder of these superconductors is a result of either an extrinsic granularity due to grain boundaries, or of an intrinsic granularity ascribable to the electronic disorder originating from impurity dopants. Here, the effects of Fe doping on the electronic properties of sputtered NbN layers with a nominal thickness of 100 nm are studied by means of low-T/high-μ0H magnetotransport measurements. The doping of NbN is achieved via implantation of 35 keV Fe ions. In the as-grown NbN films, a local onset of superconductivity at Tloconset=15.72K is found, while the global superconducting ordering is achieved at Tglooffset=15.05K, with a normal state resistivity ρxx=22μΩ·cm. Moreover, upon Fe doping of NbN, ρxx=40μΩ·cm is estimated, while Tloconset and Tglooffset are measured to be 15.1 K and 13.5 K, respectively. In Fe:NbN, the intrinsic granularity leads to the emergence of a bosonic insulator state and the normal-metal-to-superconductor transition is accompanied by six different electronic phases characterized by a N-shaped T dependence of ρxx(T). The bosonic insulator state in a s-wave conventional superconductor doped with dilute magnetic impurities is predicted to represent a workbench for emergent phenomena, such as gapless superconductivity, triplet Cooper pairings and topological odd frequency superconductivity.

Thermoelectric current in a graphene Cooper pair splitter

Generation of electric voltage in a conductor by applying a temperature gradient is a fundamental phenomenon called the Seebeck effect. This effect and its inverse is widely exploited in diverse applications ranging from thermoelectric power generators to temperature sensing. Recently, a possibility of thermoelectricity arising from the interplay of the non-local Cooper pair splitting and the elastic co-tunneling in the hybrid normal metal-superconductor-normal metal structures was predicted. Here, we report the observation of the non-local Seebeck effect in a graphene-based Cooper pair splitting device comprising two quantum dots connected to an aluminum superconductor and present a theoretical description of this phenomenon. The observed non-local Seebeck effect offers an efficient tool for producing entangled electrons.

Thermoelectricity due to the interplay of the nonlocal Cooper pair splitting and the elastic co-tunneling in normal metal-superconductor-normal metal structure is predicted. Here, the authors observe the non-local Seebeck effect in a graphene-based Cooper pair splitting device.

Thermoelectric transport in coupled double layers with interlayer excitons and exciton condensation

Quantum Boltzmann formalism is employed to study the transport properties of strongly-coupled double layer systems that enable the formation of interlayer excitons and exciton condensation. The importance of exciton formation, dissociation, and condensation is highlighted in the context of thermoelectric power generation, and this mathematical inquiry provides an alternative methodology to calculate the thermoelectric efficiency given the conditions of exciton formation. The Onsager relation for the Coulomb drag resistivity is shown to be valid even when exciton condensation is present. In addition, it is found that the traditional thermoelectric figure of merit is no longer sufficient to predict the efficiency of thermoelectric power generation in the presented situations. This inquiry offers insights for designing double layer systems, including their interlayer interactions, with enhanced thermoelectric energy conversion efficiency.

Time Reversal Symmetry Breaking Superconductors: Sr2RuO4 and Beyond

Recent work done on the time reversal symmetry (TRS) breaking superconductors is reviewed in this paper. The special attention is paid to Sr 2 RuO 4 believed to be spin triplet chiral p-wave superconductor which break TRS and is expected to posses non-trivial topological properties. The family of TRS breaking superconductors is growing relatively fast, with many of its newly discovered members being non-centrosymmetric. However not only Sr 2 RuO 4 but also many other superconductors which possess center of inversion also break TRS. The TRS is often identified by means of the muon spin relaxation ( μ SR) and the Kerr effect. Both methods effectively measure the appearance of the spontaneous bulk magnetic field below superconducting transition temperature. This compound provides an example of the material whose many band, multi-condensate modeling has enjoyed a number of successes, but the full understanding has not been achieved yet. We discuss in some details the properties of the material. Among them is the Kerr effect and by understanding has resulted in the discovery of the novel mechanism of the phenomenon. The mechanism is universal and thus applicable to all systems with multi-orbital character of states at the Fermi energy.

IFCN-endorsed practical guidelines for clinical magnetoencephalography (MEG)

Magnetoencephalography (MEG) records weak magnetic fields outside the human head and thereby provides millisecond-accurate information about neuronal currents supporting human brain function. MEG and electroencephalography (EEG) are closely related complementary methods and should be interpreted together whenever possible. This manuscript covers the basic physical and physiological principles of MEG and discusses the main aspects of state-of-the-art MEG data analysis. We provide guidelines for best practices of patient preparation, stimulus presentation, MEG data collection and analysis, as well as for MEG interpretation in routine clinical examinations. In 2017, about 200 whole-scalp MEG devices were in operation worldwide, many of them located in clinical environments. Yet, the established clinical indications for MEG examinations remain few, mainly restricted to the diagnostics of epilepsy and to preoperative functional evaluation of neurosurgical patients. We are confident that the extensive ongoing basic MEG research indicates potential for the evaluation of neurological and psychiatric syndromes, developmental disorders, and the integrity of cortical brain networks after stroke. Basic and clinical research is, thus, paving way for new clinical applications to be identified by an increasing number of practitioners of MEG.

A new generation of magnetoencephalography: Room temperature measurements using optically-pumped magnetometers

Advances in the field of quantum sensing mean that magnetic field sensors, operating at room temperature, are now able to achieve sensitivity similar to that of cryogenically cooled devices (SQUIDs). This means that room temperature magnetoencephalography (MEG), with a greatly increased flexibility of sensor placement can now be considered. Further, these new sensors can be placed directly on the scalp surface giving, theoretically, a large increase in the magnitude of the measured signal. Here, we present recordings made using a single optically-pumped magnetometer (OPM) in combination with a 3D-printed head-cast designed to accurately locate and orient the sensor relative to brain anatomy. Since our OPM is configured as a magnetometer it is highly sensitive to environmental interference. However, we show that this problem can be ameliorated via the use of simultaneous reference sensor recordings. Using median nerve stimulation, we show that the OPM can detect both evoked (phase-locked) and induced (non-phase-locked oscillatory) changes when placed over sensory cortex, with signals ~4 times larger than equivalent SQUID measurements. Using source modelling, we show that our system allows localisation of the evoked response to somatosensory cortex. Further, source-space modelling shows that, with 13 sequential OPM measurements, source-space signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is comparable to that from a 271-channel SQUID system. Our results highlight the opportunity presented by OPMs to generate uncooled, potentially low-cost, high SNR MEG systems.

Large Tunable Thermophase in Superconductor - Quantum Dot - Superconductor Josephson Junctions

In spite of extended efforts, detecting thermoelectric effects in superconductors has proven to be a challenging task, due to the inherent superconducting particle-hole symmetry. Here we present a theoretical study of an experimentally attainable Superconductor - Quantum Dot - Superconductor (SC-QD-SC) Josephson Junction. Using Keldysh Green's functions we derive the exact thermo-phase and thermal response of the junction, and demonstrate that such a junction has highly tunable thermoelectric properties and a significant thermal response. The origin of these effects is the QD energy level placed between the SCs, which breaks particle-hole symmetry in a gradual manner, allowing, in the presence of a temperature gradient, for gate controlled appearance of a superconducting thermo-phase. This thermo-phase increases up to a maximal value of ±π/2 after which thermovoltage is expected to develop. Our calculations are performed in realistic parameter regimes, and we suggest an experimental setup which could be used to verify our predictions.