Magnetoquenched Superconducting Valve

A superconducting switch has been developed in a simple bilayer cross strip geometry using the magnetic fringe field of a ferromagnetic film to control the critical current in an underlying superconducting bridge. The magnetization of the ferromagnet is rotated in the plane of the film to vary the magnitude of the fringe field locally applied to the superconductor from negligible to substantial values. In the latter case, the magnetization is oriented such that the magnetic poles are along the edges of the cross strip directly above the superconductor. The large fringe field near the poles suppresses superconductivity over a length of order microns, giving rise to superconducting weak link behavior. A large modulation of the critical current is observed. The effect is demonstrated in the low Tc superconductors Pb (Tc=7.3 K) and Sn (Tc=3.9 K). Fabrication of the device involves minimal processing. Applications as a high speed switch, amplifier, nonvolatile storage cell, and controllable weak link are possible.