Towards phase-coherent caloritronics in superconducting circuits

TL;DR

This paper reviews recent advances in phase-coherent caloritronics, focusing on controlling heat currents in superconducting circuits using quantum coherence, with potential applications in cryogenic energy management and thermal logic.

Contribution

It summarizes experimental progress and proposes new device concepts for phase-coherent heat control in superconducting systems.

Findings

Demonstrated heat interferometers and thermal rectifiers

Proposed devices like thermal transistors and heat valves

Discussed potential for quantum-coherent thermal circuits

Abstract

The emerging field of phase-coherent caloritronics (from the Latin word "calor", i.e., heat) is based on the possibility to control heat currents using the phase difference of the superconducting order parameter. The goal is to design and implement thermal devices able to master energy transfer with a degree of accuracy approaching the one reached for charge transport by contemporary electronic components. This can be obtained by exploiting the macroscopic quantum coherence intrinsic to superconducting condensates, which manifests itself through the Josephson and the proximity effect. Here, we review recent experimental results obtained in the realization of heat interferometers and thermal rectifiers, and discuss a few proposals for exotic non-linear phase-coherent caloritronic devices, such as thermal transistors, solid-state memories, phase-coherent heat splitters, microwave refrigerators, thermal engines and heat valves. Besides being very attractive from the fundamental physics point of view, these systems are expected to have a vast impact on many cryogenic microcircuits requiring energy management, and possibly lay the first stone for the foundation of electronic thermal logic.