Superconductivity is usually a two-way street, but certain devices superconduct in only one direction. This directionality, which goes by the name of the Josephson diode effect (JDE), can occur in several different device architectures, including some that combine topological insulators with superconducting materials. Cai-Zhen Li from the Beijing Institute of Technology and colleagues have demonstrated a topological system in which the JDE can be tuned by varying the input voltage [1]. This control could be useful in superconducting electronics and quantum circuits.
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