CAREER: Quantum Properties of Ultrasmall Homogeneous Superconducting Nanostructures

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This CAREER development award will support a young physics faculty member at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The project is focused on fundamental problems of phase coherence in quasi-one-dimensional superconducting systems. A novel nanofabrication method developed by the PI will be applied in order to investigate fundamental properties of ultrasmall superconductors. The fabrication technique involves metallic decoration of single-wall carbon nanotubes and provides nanowires as thin as 5 nm in diameter. The following basic problems will be addressed:: (i) the interplay between the fermionic and bosonic mechanisms of superconductivity suppression in one dimension, (ii) the effects of a "dissipative" environment on quantum superconductor-insulator transitions, and (iii) macroscopic quantum effects in homogeneous superconducting nanostructures. In addition to training students and postdoctoral researchers, the project PI will develop a course on mesoscopic physics and modern nanotechnology for undergraduate and graduate students. The multidisciplinary character of modern nanotechnology will be emphasized in the course in order to attract students from different disciplines. The students will receive training and education in cutting edge research techniques that will prepare them for careers in academe, industry and government.This five-year CAREER development project will integrate research at the forefront of condensed matter physics and nanotechnology with an interdisciplinary educational program. In the research portion of the project, new techniques will be used to investigate the properties of superconducting systems with dimensions approaching 5 nanometers-a virtually unexplored size scale of great importance to the development of future generations of ultrafast computers and electronic devices. Novel experimental approaches will be used to study the behavior of superconducting materials in ultra-small structures. Understanding these phenomena may provide information useful for the technical development of highly integrated superconducting quantum computers. Nanoscale science and technology is becoming increasingly important in ensuring the nation's scientific leadership, and the project will also support the development of new coursework on mesoscopic physics and nanotechnology for undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Illinois. The students will receive training and education in cutting edge research techniques that will prepare them for careers in academe, industry and government.