Gate control of superconducting current: Mechanisms, parameters, and technological potential

Abstract

In conventional metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) electronics, the logic state of a device is set by a gate voltage (VG). The superconducting equivalent of such effect had remained unknown until it was recently shown that a VG can tune the superconducting current (supercurrent) flowing through a nanoconstriction in a superconductor. This gate-controlled supercurrent (GCS) can lead to superconducting logics like CMOS logics, but with lower energy dissipation. The physical mechanism underlying the GCS, however, remains under debate. In this review article, we illustrate the main mechanisms proposed for the GCS, and the material and device parameters that mostly affect it based on the evidence reported. We conclude that different mechanisms are at play in the different studies reported so far. We then outline studies that can help answer open questions on the effect and achieve control over it, which is key for applications. We finally give insights into the impact that the GCS can have toward high-performance computing with low-energy dissipation and quantum technologies.