Superconducting Vortices induced Periodic Magnetoresistance Oscillations in Single Crystal Au Nanowires

TL;DR

This study demonstrates that superconducting vortices can be induced in gold nanowires via the proximity effect, leading to observable periodic magnetoresistance oscillations that reveal vortex dynamics.

Contribution

It introduces a method to induce and detect superconducting vortices in gold nanowires, showing their influence on magnetoresistance oscillations.

Findings

Periodic oscillations in magnetoresistance with a specific flux quantum period.

Vortices are sequentially generated and move across the nanowire.

Superconductivity induced in gold nanowires by proximity effect.

Abstract

We show in this paper that it is possible to induce superconducting vortices in a gold nanowire connected to superconducting electrodes. The gold nanowire acquires superconductivity by the proximity effect. The differential magnetoresistance of the nanowire beyond a critical magnetic field shows uniform oscillations with increasing field with a period of \phi0/(2\pir^2) (\phi0 = h/2e is the superconducting flux quantum, r = 35 nm is the radius of the nanowire). We demonstrate that these periodic oscillations are the signatures of the sequential generation and moving of vortices across the gold nanowire.