Nanoscale High-Tc YBCO/GaN Super-Schottky Diode

We demonstrate a high-temperature nanoscale super-Schottky diode based on a superconducting tunnel junction of pulsed-laser-deposited YBCO on GaN thin films. A buffer-free direct growth of nanoscale YBCO thin films on heavily doped GaN was performed to realize a direct high-T(c) superconductor-semiconductor junction. The junction shows strongly non-linear I-V characteristics, which have practical applications as a low-voltage super-Schottky diode for microwave mixing and detection. The V-shaped differential conductance spectra observed across the junction are characteristic of the c-axis tunneling into a cuprate superconductor with a certain disorder level. This implementation of the super-Schottky diode, supported by the buffer-free direct growth of nanoscale high-T(c) thin films on semiconductors, paves the way for practical large-scale fabrication and integration of high-T(c)-superconductor devices in future technologies.