Work

Finite temperature effects on Majorana bound states in chiral $p$-wave superconductors

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: We study Majorana modes bound to vortex cores in a chiral \bm{p} 𝐩 -wave superconductor at temperatures non-negligible compared to the superconducting gap. Thermal occupation of Caroli de Gennes-Matricon (CdGM) states, below the full gap, causes the free energy difference between the two fermionic parity sectors to decay algebraically with increasing temperature. The power law acquires an additional factor of \bm{T^{-1}} 𝐓 − 1 for each bound state thermally excited. The zero-temperature result is exponentially recovered well below the minigap (lowest-lying CdGM level). Our results suggest that temperatures larger than the minigap may not be disastrous for topological quantum computation. We discuss the prospect of precision measurements of pinning forces on vortices as a readout scheme for Majorana qubits.

Source: SciPost Physics

DOI: 10.21468/scipostphys.6.5.055

Authors: Henrik Schou Røising, Roni Ilan, Tobias Meng, Steven H. Simon, Felix Flicker

Institutions: University of Oxford, Tel Aviv University, Technische Universität Dresden

Language: English

Topic: Topological Materials and Phenomena

Subfield: Condensed Matter Physics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: diamond

Funders: New College, University of Oxford, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council