About the Paper

Realization of a New Materials Platform for Topological Quantum Circuits and Quantum Computing
- Development of a Novel Method for Forming Superconducting Nanostructures in Topological Material Thin Films and the Superconductor Diode Effect -
Associate Professor Le Duc Anh, Associate Professor Masaki Kobayashi, Professor Masaaki Tanaka, and graduate students Keita Ishihara, Tomoki Hotta, Kota Inagaki, Hideki Maki, and Takahiro Saeki of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Spintronics, Graduate School of Engineering, the University of Tokyo. The group has developed a new fabrication technique to fabricate nanostructures of the superconductor β-Sn at arbitrary positions in the α-Sn film surface with arbitrary shapes and nanoscales by irradiating topological Dirac semimetal (TDS) α-Sn films with a focused ion beam. In the β-Sn superconducting nanostructure in TDS α-Sn, the research group realized the superconducting diode effect, in which the superconducting current flows in only one direction when a magnetic field is applied in the direction of the wires. This is the first observation of the superconducting diode effect due to the superconductivity of TDS α-Sn in the proximi
ty effect with the superconductor β-Sn. Since the new method developed in this study enables the fabrication of high-quality nanostructures composed of superconductor/topological materials at will, it is expected to be a method to realize various superconducting circuits and quantum circuits capable of error-resistant topological quantum operations.
The research results were published in the British scientific journal Nature Communications on September 30, 2024.

Authors

Le Duc Anh*, Keita Ishihara*, Tomoki Hotta, Kohdai Inagaki, Hideki Maki, Takahiro Saeki, Masaki Kobayashi, and Masaaki Tanaka

• equal contribution

Title

Nature Communications 15, 8014 (2024)

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-52080-4

Press Release (2024.9.30)
Realization of a New Material Platform for Topological Quantum Circuits and Quantum Computing
— Development of a Novel Method for Forming Superconducting Nanostructures in Topological Material Thin Films and the Superconductor Diode Effect —
[https://www.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/press/pr2024-10-01-002]

Media Coverage
Nihon Keizai Shimbun (September 30, 2024)
The University of Tokyo achieves a new material platform for realizing topological quantum circuits and quantum computing
[https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXZRSP679148_X20C24A9000000/]

Tech-Eye Technology Information Institute (September 30, 2024)
Realization of a New Material Platform for Topological Quantum Circuits and Quantum Computing — Development of a Novel Method for Forming Superconducting Nanostructures in Topological Material Thin Films and the Superconductor Diode Effect —
[https://tiisys.com/blog/2024/10/01/post-145316/]

Japan Research.com News (October 1, 2024)
Realization of a New Material Platform for Topological Quantum Circuits and Quantum Computing — Development of a Novel Method for Forming Superconducting Nanostructures in Topological Material Thin Films and the Superconductor Diode Effect — / The University of Tokyo
[https://research-er.jp/articles/view/137770]

Science Newspaper (October 4, 2024)
The University of Tokyo's research group develops a new method to form superconducting nanostructures within topological materials