Threshold Resistance in the DC Josephson Effect

TL;DR

This paper explains the existence of a threshold resistance in SIS Josephson junctions, where supercurrents diminish due to Cooper pair size reduction, aligning with experimental observations across various superconductors.

Contribution

It introduces a new understanding of how Cooper pair size influences Josephson coupling and threshold resistance in SIS junctions, explaining diverse experimental phenomena.

Findings

Threshold resistance limits supercurrent in SIS junctions.

Higher Tc superconductors have smaller Cooper pairs, reducing supercurrents.

High Tc cuprates exhibit Josephson effects mainly in SNS junctions.

Abstract

We show that SIS Josephson junctions have a threshold resistance, above which the Josephson coupling and the supercurrents become extremely small, due to the shrinking of the Cooper pair size during the Josephson tunneling. Accordingly, the threshold resistance is smaller for higher Tc superconductors with small Cooper pair size and for the insulating barrier with higher resistance. This understanding agrees with the observations in SIS junctions of low Tc superconductors, such as Sn, Pb, and Nb. For MgB2 it explains why the big gap does not show the supercurrents, unlike the small gap. Furthermore, it is consistent with the fact that high Tc cuprates show the Josephson effects only for SNS type junctions, including the intrinsic Josephson effects.