Effects of Annealing to Tunnel Junction Stability

We have studied how annealing affects the stability of submicron sized Al-AlOx-Al tunnel junctions. Samples were annealed in temperatures ranging from 200 deg C to 500 deg C in a vacuum chamber. Characterization of the samples at liquid helium temperature shows a change in the charging energy of the...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Koppinen, P J, Vaisto, L M, Maasilta, I J
Format: Conference Proceeding
Language:English
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:We have studied how annealing affects the stability of submicron sized Al-AlOx-Al tunnel junctions. Samples were annealed in temperatures ranging from 200 deg C to 500 deg C in a vacuum chamber. Characterization of the samples at liquid helium temperature shows a change in the charging energy of the junctions after annealing. More significantly, we have observed a stepwise increase and a complete stabilization of the tunneling resistance after an annealing cycle in high temperatures. In addition to annealing, plasma cleaning of the substrate before metal deposition also reduces the rate of aging of the junctions.
ISSN:0094-243X
DOI:10.1063/1.2355335