• Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.38-42
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• 2015

In terms of food safety,mixture of contaminants in food is a serious problem for not only consumers but also manufacturers. In general, the target size of the metallic contaminant to be removed is 0.5 mm. However, it is a difficult task for manufacturers to achieve this target, because of lower system sensitivity. Therefore, we developed a food contaminant detection system based on high-Tc RF superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs), which are highly sensitive magnetic sensors. This study aims to improve the signal to noise ratio (SNR) of the system and detect a 0.5 mm diameter steel ball. Using a real time digital signal processing technique along with analog band-pass filters, we improved the SNR of the system. Owing to the improved SNR, a steel ball with a diameter as small as 0.3 mm, with stand-off distance of 117 mm was successfully detected. These results suggest that the proposed system is a promising candidate for the detection of metallic contaminants in food products.

• Progress in Superconductivity
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.20-25
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• 1999

We constructed a high-$T_c$ scanning SQUID microscope (SSM) operating in the liquid nitrogen. We used a washer-type YBCO SQUID with inner and outer dimensions of $12{\mu}m$ and $36{\mu}m$, respectively, which was grown on the $SrTiO^3$ bicrystal substrate. The sample, rather than SQUID, was scanned using two stepping motors. We also developed readout electronics, stepping motor controller, and the software for system control and data display. We took images of various samples using our SSM and found that the spatial resolution is about $40{\mu}m$ and noise level is lower than $10^{-7}T/{\surd}Hz$ at 100 Hz and higher at lower frequencies. The noise level was much higher than that of a typical SQUID due to the other coupling from the electric parts. We present a simple argument on the inductive coupling between the sample and the SQUID which should be under-stood for the proper interpretation of the obtained images. By comparing the measured data with the simulation results the gap between the SQUID and the sample is estimated to be $40{\mu}m$.

• Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.40-43
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• 2014

Quantum information processing using superconducting qubit based on Josephson junction has become one of the most promising candidates for possible realization of a quantum computer. In the heart of the qubit circuits, the superconducting microwave resonator plays a key role in quantum operations and measurements, which enables single-photon level microwave quantum optics. During last decade, the coherence time, or the lifetime of the quantum state, of the superconducting qubit has been dramatically improved. Among several technological innovations, the improvement of superconducting microwave resonator's quality has been the main driving force in getting the qubit performance almost ready for elementary quantum computing architecture. In this paper, I will briefly review very recent progresses of the superconducting microwave resonators especially aimed for quantum device applications during the last decade. The progresses have been driven by ingenious circuit design, material improvement, and new measurement techniques. Even a rather radical idea of three-dimensional large resonators have been successfully implemented in a qubit circuit. All those efforts contributed to our understanding of the qubit decoherence mechanism and as a result to the improvement of qubit performance.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.86-91
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• 1999

We have fabricated high-$\textrm{T}_c$ superconducting $\textrm{YBa}_{2}\textrm{Cu}_{3}\textrm{O}_{7-x}$(YBCO) grain boundary junctions at a step-edge on (001) $\textrm{SrTiO}_3$(STO) substrates. A diamond-like carbon (DLC) film grown by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition were used as an ion milling mask to make steps on the STO (100) single crystal and was removed by an oxygen reactive ion etch process. The c-axis oriented YBCO and TO thin films were deposited epitaxially on the STO substrate with a step-edge by pulsed laser deposition. The grain boundary junctions were formed at the top and the bottom of the step. The junctions worked at temperatures above 77 K, and had I\ulcornerR\ulcorner products of 7.5mV at 16K and 0.3 mV at 77K, respectively. The I-V characteristics of these junctions showed the shape of the two noisy resistively shunted junction model.

• Progress in Superconductivity
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.6-10
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• 2005

We have studied feasibility of single-layer second-order $high-T_c$ SQUID gradiometers in magnetocardiography. We have measured human cardiomagnetic signals using a short-baseline (5.8 mm) single-layer second-order YBCO gradiometer in partially shielded environments. The gradiometer has an overall size of $17.6\;mm{\times}6\;mm$ and contains three parallel-connected pickup coils which are directly coupled to a step-edge junction SQUID. The gradiometer showed an unshielded gradient noise of $0.84\;pT/cm^2/Hz^{1/2}$ at 1 Hz, which corresponds to an equivalent field noise of $280\;fT/Hz^{1/2}$. The balancing factor was $10^3$. Based on the same design rules as the short-baseline devices, we have studied fabrication of 30 mm-long baseline gradiometers. The devices had an overall size of $70.2\;mm{\times}10.6\;mm$ with each pickup coil of $10\;mm{\times}10\;mm$ in outer size. As Josephson elements we made two types of submicron bridges, which are variable thickness bridge (VTB) and constant thickness bridge (CTB), from $3\;{\mu}m-wide$ and 300 nm-thick YBCO lines with a thin layer of Au on top by using a focused ion beam (FIB) patterning method. VTB was 300 nm wide, 200 nm thick, 30 nm long with Au removed and CTB 100 nm wide and 30 nm long. In temperature-dependent critical currents, $I_c(T)$, VTB showed an nonmetallic barrier-type behavior and CTB an SNS behavior. We believe that those characteristics are ascribed to naturally formed grain boundaries crossing the bridges.

• Progress in Superconductivity
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.139-145
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• 2012

Electric activity of cardiac muscles generates magnetic fields. Magnetocardiography (or MCG) technology, measuring these magnetic signals, can provide useful information for the diagnosis of heart diseases. It is already about 40 years ago that the first measurement of MCG signals was done by D. Cohen using SQUID (superconducting quantum interference device) sensor inside a magnetically shielded room. In the early period of MCG history, bulky point-contact RF-SQUID was used as the magnetic sensor. Thanks to the development of Nb-based Josephson junction technology in mid 1980s and new design of tightly-coupled DC-SQUID, low-noise SQUID sensors could be developed in late 1980s. In around 1990, several groups developed multi-channel MCG systems and started clinical study. However, it is quite recent years that the true usefulness of MCG was verified in clinical practice, for example, in the diagnosis of coronary artery disease. For the practical MCG system, technical elements of MCG system should be optimized in terms of performance, fabrication cost and operation cost. In this review, development history, technical issue, and future development direction of MCG technology are described.

• Progress in Superconductivity
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2002

Transferring single flux quanta across a Josephson junction at an exactly determined rate has made highly precise voltage measurements possible. Making use of self-shunted Nb-based SINIS junctions, programmable fast-switching DC voltage standards with output voltages of up to 10 V were produced. This development is now extended from fundamental DC measurements to the precise determination of AC voltages with arbitrary waveforms. Integrated RSFQ circuits will help to replace expensive semiconductor devices for frequency control and signal coding. Easy-to-handle AC and inexpensive quantum voltmeters of fundamental accuracy would be of interest to industry. In analogy to the development in the flux regime, metallic nanocircuits comprising small-area tunnel junctions and providing the coherent transport of single electrons might play an important role in quantum current metrology. By precise counting of single charges these circuits allow prototypes of quantum standards for electric current and capacitance to be realised. Replacing single electron devices by single Cooper pair circuits, the charge transfer rates and thus the quantum currents could be significantly increased. Recently, the principles of the gate-controlled transfer of individual Cooper pairs in superconducting A1 devices in different electromagnetic environments were demonstrated. The characteristics of these quantum coherent circuits can be improved by replacing the small aluminum tunnel Junctions by niobium junctions. Due to the higher value of the superconducting energy gap ($\Delta_{Nb}$ ＝ $7\Delta_{Al}$), the characteristic energy and the frequency scales for Nb devices are substantially extended as compared to A1 devices. Although the fabrication of small Nb junctions presents a real challenge, the Nb-based metrological devices will be faster and more accurate in operation. Moreover, the Nb-based Cooper pair electrometer could be coupled to an Nb single Cooper pair qubit which can be beneficial for both, the stability of the qubit and its readout with a large signal-to-noise ratio..