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Nature 425, 133-136 (11 September 2003) | doi:10.1038/425133a
Condensed-matter physics: Vortices and hearts
John Clarke1
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Abstract
A single vortex of flux, formed inside a superconducting Josephson junction, has been detected undergoing quantum tunnelling — a feature that could be developed into a quantum bit.
Vortices are ubiquitous — from the mythical whirlpool of Charybdis in the Strait of Messina, to the putative cosmic strings that were frozen into space-time shortly after the Big Bang. In superconductors, too, swirling currents generate vortices of flux.
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