2020/02/29 by Olivier Maillet, Diego Subero, Joonas T. Peltonen +3
Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics #Condensed matter physics #Dephasing #Josephson effect #Mesoscopic physics #Open quantum system #Physics #Quantum #Quantum and electron transport phenomena #Quantum mechanics #Quantum tunnelling #Superconductivity #Thermal Radiation and Cooling Technologies #cond-mat.mes-hall #cond-mat.supr-con #quant-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1038/s41467-020-18163-8
published as Nature Communications 11, 4326 (2020) · Final version, SI included, 15 pages and 10 figures in total
arxiv created 2020/08/28 · openalex publication_date 2020/08/28 · arxiv updated 2020/08/31 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
Heat is detrimental for the operation of quantum systems, yet it fundamentally behaves according to quantum mechanics, being phase coherent and universally quantum-limited regardless of its carriers. Due to their robustness, superconducting circuits integrating dissipative elements are ideal candidates to emulate many-body phenomena in quantum heat transport, hitherto scarcely explored experimentally. However, their ability to tackle the underlying full physical richness is severely hindered by the exclusive use of a magnetic flux as a control parameter and requires complementary approaches. Here, we introduce a dual, magnetic field-free circuit where charge quantization in a superconducting island enables thorough electric field control. We thus tune the thermal conductance, close to its quantum limit, of a single photonic channel between two mesoscopic reservoirs. We observe heat flow oscillations originating from the competition between Cooper-pair tunnelling and Coulomb repulsion in the island, well captured by a simple model. Our results highlight the consequences of charge-phase conjugation on heat transport, with promising applications in thermal management of quantum devices and design of microbolometers.