Spin-polarized multiple Andreev reflections in spin-split superconductors
Bo Lu, Pablo Burset, Yukio Tanaka
Abstract
Superconductors with spin-split energy bands are an important building block for superconducting spintronic designs. Motivated by the recent measurement of tunneling quasiparticle currents between spin-split superconductors, this work investigates theoretically voltage-biased Josephson junctions of arbitrary transparency. The authors show that an exotic subharmonic gap structure arises due to spin-polarized multiple Andreev reflections (MARs), where the odd-order MARs split, but the even-order ones remain unaffected by the spin-split fields. These findings provide a tool to determine the amplitude and alignment of Zeeman fields in spin-split superconductors.
Topics & Concepts
Andreev reflectionCondensed matter physicsSuperconductivityPhysicsQuasiparticleZeeman effectSpintronicsSpin (aerodynamics)Spin polarizationQuantum mechanicsFerromagnetismMagnetic fieldElectronThermodynamicsPhysics of Superconductivity and MagnetismQuantum and electron transport phenomenaMagnetic and transport properties of perovskites and related materials