Tuning the 0 - π Josephson junction with a magnetic impurity: Role of tunnel contacts, exchange coupling, e - e interactions and high-spin states

Sci Rep. 2018 Mar 26;8(1):5208. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-23517-w.

Abstract

We propose Josephson junction with a high-spin magnetic impurity sandwiched between two superconductors. This system shows a π junction behavior as a function of the spin magnetic moment state of the impurity, the interface transparency, exchange coupling and electron-electron interactions in the system. The system is theoretically analyzed for possible reason behind the π shift. The crucial role of spin flip scattering is highlighted. Possible applications in quantum computation of our proposed tunable high spin magnetic impurity π junction is underscored.