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We present a novel lab-on-chip technique to measure the very low losses in superconducting transmission lines at (sub-) mm wavelengths. The chips consist of a 100 nm thick NbTiN Coplanar Waveguide (CPW) Fabry Perot (FP) resonator, coupled on one side to an antenna and on the other side to a Microwave Kinetic Inductance detector. Using a single frequency radiation source allows us to measure the frequency response of the FP around 350 GHz and deduce its losses. We show that the loss is dominated by radiation loss inside the CPW line that forms the FP and that it decreases with decreasing line width and increasing kinetic inductance as expected. The results can be quantitatively understood using SONNET simulations. The lowest loss is observed for a CPW with a total width of $6\ \mathrm{\mu m}$ and corresponds to a Q-factor of $\approx15,000$., Comment: 5 pages + appendix. Accepted for publication in APL. Author's accepted version

We demonstrate photon noise limited performance in both phase and amplitude readout in microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKIDs) consisting of NbTiN and Al, down to 100 fW of optical power. We simulate the far field beam pattern of the lens-antenna system used to couple radiation into the MKID and derive an aperture efficiency of 75%. This is close to the theoretical maximum of 80% for a single-moded detector. The beam patterns are verified by a detailed analysis of the optical coupling within our measurement setup., Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures

A new GaAs‐based diluted magnetic semiconductor, (Ga,Mn)As, was prepared by molecular beam epitaxy. The lattice constant of (Ga,Mn)As films was determined by x‐ray diffraction and shown to increase with the increase of Mn composition, x. Well‐aligned in‐plane ferromagnetic order was observed by magnetization measurements. Magnetotransport measurements revealed the occurrence of anomalous Hall effect in the (Ga,Mn)As layer.

We have measured and compared the response of hybrid NbTiN-Al Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors (MKIDs) to changes in bath temperature and illumination by sub-mm radiation. We show that these two stimulants have an equivalent effect on the resonance feature of hybrid MKIDs. We determine an electrical NEP from the measured temperature responsivity, quasiparticle recombination time, superconducting transition temperature and noise spectrum, all of which can be measured in a dark environment. For the two hybrid NbTiN-Al MKIDs studied in detail the electrical NEP is within a factor of two of the optical NEP, which is measured directly using a blackbody source., Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures

We have investigated the effect of irradiation of solid Sn targets with laser pulses of sub-ns duration and sub-mJ energy on the diameter of the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) emitting region and source conversion efficiency. It was found that an in-band EUV source diameter as low as 18 μm was produced due to the short scale length of a plasma produced by a sub-ns laser. Most of the EUV emission occurs in a narrow region with a plasma density close to the critical density value. Such EUV sources are suitable for high brightness and high repetition rate metrology applications.

Bright narrow band emission observed in optically thin plasmas of high-Z elements in the extreme ultraviolet spectral region follows a quasi-Moseley's law. The peak wavelength can be expressed as λ=(21.86±12.09)×R∞−1×(Z−(23.23±2.87))−(1.52±0.12), where R∞ is the Rydberg constant. The wavelength varies from 13.5 nm to 4.0 nm as the atomic number, Z, increases from Z = 50 to Z = 83. The range of emission wavelengths available from hot optically thin plasmas permits the development of bright laboratory-scale sources for applications including x-ray microscopy and x-ray absorption fine structure determination.

We experimentally demonstrate the principle of an on-chip submillimeter wave filter bank spectrometer, using superconducting microresonators as narrow band-separation filters. The filters are made of NbTiN/SiNx/NbTiN microstrip line resonators, which have a resonance frequency in the range of 614-685 GHz---two orders of magnitude higher in frequency than what is currently studied for use in circuit quantum electrodynamics and photodetectors. The frequency resolution of the filters decreases from 350 to 140 with increasing frequency, most likely limited by dissipation of the resonators., Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Applied Physics Letters

Development of laser-produced plasma “water window” sources poses a major challenge in x-ray research and most effort has focused on line sources for use with zone plate optics. Here, a comparison of carbon and nitrogen line emission with that from both 3d – 4f and 4d – 4f unresolved transition arrays shows that, at power densities available from “table-top” solid-state lasers, 3d – 4f emission from zirconium plasmas is most intense, and calculations show that in an imaging system based on multilayer mirrors, for reflectance bandwidths >1% has superior performance than either line or broader-band sources. For bandwidths

Recent work on multilayer mirror development for beyond extreme ultraviolet lithography indicates that their optimum reflectivity occurs at either 6.63 nm or 6.66 nm which may be too short a wavelength for Gd-based plasma sources. Calculations performed for Tb12+ to Tb28+ ions show that if the mirror reflectivity is fixed at one of these values, Tb may be a better source, though Gd is capable of providing greater intensity if the full reflection curve of the mirrors is exploited. Theoretical simulation shows that the Tb emission peaks close to 6.51 nm at an optimum electron temperature close to 120 eV.

We have demonstrated the effect of viewing angle on the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) emission spectra of gadolinium (Gd) near 6.7 nm. The spectra are shown to have a strong dependence on viewing angle when produced with a laser pulse duration of 10 ns, which may be attributed to absorption by low ion stages of Gd and an angular variation in the ion distribution. Absorption effects are less pronounced at a 150-ps pulse duration due to reduced opacity resulting from plasma expansion. Thus for evaluating source intensity it is necessary to allow for variation with both viewing angle and target orientation. Science Foundation Ireland

We have demonstrated an efficient extreme ultraviolet (EUV) source at 6.7 nm by irradiating Gd targets with 0.8 and 1.06 μm laser pulses of 140 fs to 10 ns duration. Maximum conversion efficiency of 0.4% was observed within a 0.6% bandwidth. A Faraday cup observed ion yield and time of flight signals for ions from plasmas generated by each laser. Ion kinetic energy was lower for shorter pulse durations, which yielded higher electron temperatures required for efficient EUV emission, due to higher laser intensity. Picosecond laser pulses were found to be the best suited to 6.7 nm EUV source generation. Science Foundation Ireland

We demonstrate a table-top broadband emission water window source based on laser-produced high-Z plasmas. Resonance emission from multiply charged ions merges to produce intense unresolved transition arrays in the 2 to 4 nm region, extending below the carbon K edge (4.37 nm). Arrays resulting from n = 4−4 transitions are overlaid with n = 4−5 emission and shift to shorter wavelength with increasing atomic number. From spectral analysis, a guideline for microscope construction design for single-shot live cell imaging is proposed based on the use of a bismuth plasma source, coupled with multilayer mirror optics. Higher Education Authority

We demonstrate an efficient extreme ultraviolet (EUV) source for operation at λ = 6.7 nm by optimizing the optical thickness of gadolinium (Gd) plasmas. Using low initial density Gd targets and dual laser pulse irradiation, we observed a maximum EUV conversion efficiency (CE) of 0.54% for 0.6% bandwidth (BW) (1.8% for 2% BW), which is 1.6 times larger than the 0.33% (0.6% BW) CE produced from a solid density target. Enhancement of the EUV CE by use of a low-density plasma is attributed to the reduction of self-absorption effects.

We have demonstrated a laser-produced plasma extreme ultraviolet source operating in the 6.5-6.7 nm region based on rare-earth targets of Gd and Tb coupled with a Mo/B4C multilayer mirror. Multiply charged ions produce strong resonance emission lines, which combine to yield an intense unresolved transition array. The spectra of these resonant lines around 6.7 nm (in-band: 6.7 nm +/-1%) suggest that the in-band emission increases with increased plasma volume by suppressing the plasma hydrodynamic expansion loss at an electron temperature of about 50 eV, resulting in maximized emission.

We demonstrated a fivefold reduction in Sn debris deposited on small Mo∕Si multilayer mirrors from a Sn planar target by applying a static magnetic field of 1T. The debris reduction is attributed to the decrease of more than three orders in the number of ions that reach the sample mirror due to their interaction with the applied magnetic field that guides the ions away from the mirror. The remaining deposition is due to neutral Sn atoms that do not interact with the applied magnetic field.

We demonstrated enhancement of in-band conversion efficiency (CE) at 13.5nm of the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) emission from a tin (Sn) cavity target irradiated by a CO2 laser pulse. Whereas a planar Sn target produced an in-band CE of around 2%, the use of cavity targets significantly enhanced the EUV emission energy and the EUV CE. An EUV CE of 4% was observed for a Sn cavity target with a depth of 200μm which is one of the highest values ever reported.

For space observatories, the glitches caused by high energy phonons created by the interaction of cosmic ray particles with the detector substrate lead to dead time during observation. Mitigating the impact of cosmic rays is therefore an important requirement for detectors to be used in future space missions. In order to investigate possible solutions, we carry out a systematic study by testing four large arrays of Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors (MKIDs), each consisting of $\sim$960 pixels and fabricated on monolithic 55 mm $\times$ 55 mm $\times$ 0.35 mm Si substrates. We compare the response to cosmic ray interactions in our laboratory for different detector arrays: A standard array with only the MKID array as reference; an array with a low $T_c$ superconducting film as phonon absorber on the opposite side of the substrate; and arrays with MKIDs on membranes. The idea is that the low $T_c$ layer down-converts the phonon energy to values below the pair breaking threshold of the MKIDs, and the membranes isolate the sensitive part of the MKIDs from phonons created in the substrate. We find that the dead time can be reduced up to a factor of 40 when compared to the reference array. Simulations show that the dead time can be reduced to below 1 % for the tested detector arrays when operated in a spacecraft in an L2 or a similar far-Earth orbit. The technique described here is also applicable and important for large superconducting qubit arrays for future quantum computers., 5 pages, 4 figures; accepted to APL