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Signatures of topological phase transitions in mesoscopic superconducting rings

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Signatures of topological phase transitions in mesoscopic superconducting rings. / Pientka, Falko; Romito, Alessandro; Duckheim, Mathias et al.
In: New Journal of Physics, Vol. 15, 025001, 01.02.2013.

Research output: Contribution to Journal/MagazineJournal articlepeer-review

Harvard

Pientka, F, Romito, A, Duckheim, M, Oreg, Y & Oppen, FV 2013, 'Signatures of topological phase transitions in mesoscopic superconducting rings', New Journal of Physics, vol. 15, 025001. https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/15/2/025001

APA

Pientka, F., Romito, A., Duckheim, M., Oreg, Y., & Oppen, F. V. (2013). Signatures of topological phase transitions in mesoscopic superconducting rings. New Journal of Physics, 15, Article 025001. https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/15/2/025001

Vancouver

Pientka F, Romito A, Duckheim M, Oreg Y, Oppen FV. Signatures of topological phase transitions in mesoscopic superconducting rings. New Journal of Physics. 2013 Feb 1;15:025001. doi: 10.1088/1367-2630/15/2/025001

Author

Pientka, Falko ; Romito, Alessandro ; Duckheim, Mathias et al. / Signatures of topological phase transitions in mesoscopic superconducting rings. In: New Journal of Physics. 2013 ; Vol. 15.

Bibtex

@article{403584bbdc614ba79f3ab9724f75a320,
title = "Signatures of topological phase transitions in mesoscopic superconducting rings",
abstract = "We investigate Josephson currents in mesoscopic rings with a weak link which are in or near a topological superconducting phase. As a paradigmatic example, we consider the Kitaev model of a spinless p-wave superconductor in one dimension, emphasizing how this model emerges from more realistic settings based on semiconductor nanowires. We show that the flux periodicity of the Josephson current provides signatures of the topological phase transition and the emergence of Majorana fermions (MF) situated on both sides of the weak link even when fermion parity is not a good quantum number. In large rings, the MF hybridize only across the weak link. In this case, the Josephson current is h/e periodic in the flux threading the loop when fermion parity is a good quantum number but reverts to the more conventional h/2e periodicity in the presence of fermion-parity changing relaxation processes. In mesoscopic rings, the MF also hybridize through their overlap in the interior of the superconducting ring. We find that in the topological superconducting phase, this gives rise to an h/e-periodic contribution even when fermion parity is not conserved and that this contribution exhibits a peak near the topological phase transition. This signature of the topological phase transition is robust to the effects of disorder. As a byproduct, we find that close to the topological phase transition, disorder drives the system deeper into the topological phase. This is in stark contrast to the known behavior far from the phase transition, where disorder tends to suppress the topological phase.",
author = "Falko Pientka and Alessandro Romito and Mathias Duckheim and Yuval Oreg and Oppen, {Felix Von}",
year = "2013",
month = feb,
day = "1",
doi = "10.1088/1367-2630/15/2/025001",
language = "English",
volume = "15",
journal = "New Journal of Physics",
issn = "1367-2630",
publisher = "IOP Publishing Ltd",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - Signatures of topological phase transitions in mesoscopic superconducting rings

AU - Pientka, Falko

AU - Romito, Alessandro

AU - Duckheim, Mathias

AU - Oreg, Yuval

AU - Oppen, Felix Von

PY - 2013/2/1

Y1 - 2013/2/1

N2 - We investigate Josephson currents in mesoscopic rings with a weak link which are in or near a topological superconducting phase. As a paradigmatic example, we consider the Kitaev model of a spinless p-wave superconductor in one dimension, emphasizing how this model emerges from more realistic settings based on semiconductor nanowires. We show that the flux periodicity of the Josephson current provides signatures of the topological phase transition and the emergence of Majorana fermions (MF) situated on both sides of the weak link even when fermion parity is not a good quantum number. In large rings, the MF hybridize only across the weak link. In this case, the Josephson current is h/e periodic in the flux threading the loop when fermion parity is a good quantum number but reverts to the more conventional h/2e periodicity in the presence of fermion-parity changing relaxation processes. In mesoscopic rings, the MF also hybridize through their overlap in the interior of the superconducting ring. We find that in the topological superconducting phase, this gives rise to an h/e-periodic contribution even when fermion parity is not conserved and that this contribution exhibits a peak near the topological phase transition. This signature of the topological phase transition is robust to the effects of disorder. As a byproduct, we find that close to the topological phase transition, disorder drives the system deeper into the topological phase. This is in stark contrast to the known behavior far from the phase transition, where disorder tends to suppress the topological phase.

AB - We investigate Josephson currents in mesoscopic rings with a weak link which are in or near a topological superconducting phase. As a paradigmatic example, we consider the Kitaev model of a spinless p-wave superconductor in one dimension, emphasizing how this model emerges from more realistic settings based on semiconductor nanowires. We show that the flux periodicity of the Josephson current provides signatures of the topological phase transition and the emergence of Majorana fermions (MF) situated on both sides of the weak link even when fermion parity is not a good quantum number. In large rings, the MF hybridize only across the weak link. In this case, the Josephson current is h/e periodic in the flux threading the loop when fermion parity is a good quantum number but reverts to the more conventional h/2e periodicity in the presence of fermion-parity changing relaxation processes. In mesoscopic rings, the MF also hybridize through their overlap in the interior of the superconducting ring. We find that in the topological superconducting phase, this gives rise to an h/e-periodic contribution even when fermion parity is not conserved and that this contribution exhibits a peak near the topological phase transition. This signature of the topological phase transition is robust to the effects of disorder. As a byproduct, we find that close to the topological phase transition, disorder drives the system deeper into the topological phase. This is in stark contrast to the known behavior far from the phase transition, where disorder tends to suppress the topological phase.

U2 - 10.1088/1367-2630/15/2/025001

DO - 10.1088/1367-2630/15/2/025001

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:84874523389

VL - 15

JO - New Journal of Physics

JF - New Journal of Physics

SN - 1367-2630

M1 - 025001

ER -