Effect of nearby Pearl vortices upon the $I_c$ vs $B$ characteristics of planar Josephson junctions in thin and narrow superconducting strips

TL;DR

This paper presents a theoretical method to analyze how nearby Pearl vortices influence the critical current versus magnetic field in narrow superconducting strips with Josephson junctions, explaining recent experimental observations.

Contribution

It introduces a calculation approach for vortex effects on $I_c(B)$ in thin superconducting strips, linking theory with recent experimental findings.

Findings

Theoretical model explains unusual $I_c(B)$ features observed experimentally.

Nearby Pearl vortices significantly modify the critical current characteristics.

Results provide qualitative understanding of vortex-induced effects in narrow superconducting devices.

Abstract

In this paper I show how to calculate the effect of a nearby Pearl vortex or antivortex upon the critical current $I_c(B)$ when a perpendicular magnetic induction $B$ is applied to a planar Josephson junction in a long, thin superconducting strip of width $W$ much less than the Pearl length $\Lambda = 2\lambda^2/d$, where $\lambda$ is the London penetration depth and $d$ is the thickness ($d < \lambda$). The theoretical results provide a qualitative explanation of unusual features recently observed experimentally by Golod {\it et al.}\cite{Golod10} in a device with a similar geometry.