Josephson effect

Physics

Spin–orbit interaction

Topological insulator

Pi Josephson junction

Superfluidity

Condensed matter physics

Phase (matter)

Supercurrent

Superconductivity

Quantum mechanics

Nature Communications

The transmission of Cooper pairs between two weakly coupled superconductors produces a superfluid current and a phase difference; the celebrated Josephson effect. Because of time-reversal and parity symmetries, there is no Josephson current without a phase difference between two superconductors. Reciprocally, when those two symmetries are broken, an anomalous supercurrent can exist in the absence of phase bias or, equivalently, an anomalous phase shift φ0 can exist in the absence of a superfluid current. We report on the observation of an anomalous phase shift φ0 in hybrid Josephson junctions fabricated with the topological insulator Bi2Se3 submitted to an in-plane magnetic field. This anomalous phase shift φ0 is observed directly through measurements of the current-phase relationship in a Josephson interferometer. This result provides a direct measurement of the spin-orbit coupling strength and open new possibilities for phase-controlled Josephson devices made from materials with strong spin-orbit coupling.

Spin-Orbit induced phase-shift in Bi2Se3 Josephson junctions