Quantum mechanics

Nuclear physics

Critical current

Vortex

Telecommunications

Computer science

Josephson effect

Thermodynamics

Physics

Pinning force

Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution

Superconductivity

Condensed matter physics

Electron

Mechanics

Nucleation

Nature Communications

The ultra-fast dynamics of superconducting vortices harbors rich physics generic to nonequilibrium collective systems. The phenomenon of flux-flow instability (FFI), however, prevents its exploration and sets practical limits for the use of vortices in various applications. To suppress the FFI, a superconductor should exhibit a rarely achieved combination of properties: weak volume pinning, close-to-depairing critical current, and fast heat removal from heated electrons. Here, we demonstrate experimentally ultra-fast vortex motion at velocities of 10-15 km/s in a directly written Nb-C superconductor in which a close-to-perfect edge barrier orders the vortex motion at large current values. The spatial evolution of the FFI is described using the edge-controlled FFI model, implying a chain of FFI nucleation points along the sample edge and their development into self-organized Josephson-like junctions (vortex rivers). In addition, our results offer insights into the applicability of widely used FFI models and suggest Nb-C to be a good candidate material for fast single-photon detectors.

Ultra-fast vortex motion in a direct-write Nb-C superconductor