Patterning of ultrathin YBCO nanowires using a new focused-ion-beam process

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel focused-ion-beam technique for patterning ultrathin YBCO superconducting films at the nanoscale, aiming to improve fabrication of high-Tc superconducting devices.

Contribution

A new focused-ion-beam process that locally implants ions to pattern ultrathin YBCO films without damaging the material.

Findings

Successful patterning of YBCO nanowires at the nanometric scale.

Potential applications in high-Tc superconducting photon detectors.

Method preserves superconducting properties of YBCO.

Abstract

Manufacturing superconducting circuits out of ultrathin films is a challenging task when it comes to patterning complex compounds, which are likely to be deteriorated by the patterning process. With the purpose of developing high-T$_c$ superconducting photon detectors, we designed a novel route to pattern ultrathin YBCO films down to the nanometric scale. We believe that our method, based on a specific use of a focused-ion beam, consists in locally implanting Ga^{3+} ions and/or defects instead of etching the film. This protocol could be of interest to engineer high-T$_c$ superconducting devices (SQUIDS, SIS/SIN junctions and Josephson junctions), as well as to treat other sensitive compounds.