Local Broadband Gigahertz Spectroscopy via SQUID-on-Tip DC Readout
Abstract
Superconducting microwave circuits are shaped by their local electromagnetic environment, yet standard microwave measurements do not resolve the local fields and device features that govern their behavior. Here, we combine microwave spectroscopy, nanoscale magnetic sensing, and topographic imaging in a single tapping-mode SQUID-on-tip microscope. The nonlinear Josephson response converts local GHz excitations into Shapiro steps, enabling quantitative measurements of microwave frequency signals and their excitation strength using only DC readout. Applied to a superconducting coplanar waveguide resonator, local spectroscopy reproduces the power-dependent resonance and nonlinear bifurcation observed in microwave transmission measurements. Spatially resolved measurements map the microwave response while simultaneously recording topography and static magnetic features, including vortices and Meissner screening currents. Electromagnetic simulations reveal how coupling through the superconducting probe leads limits spatial resolution and guides localized detector designs. Together, these capabilities establish a platform for correlating microwave circuit dynamics with the local structural and magnetic environment of superconducting devices.
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BibTeX
@misc{vervoort2026local,
title = {{Local Broadband Gigahertz Spectroscopy via SQUID-on-Tip DC Readout}},
author = {Senne Vervoort and Lukas Nulens and Julia Baumgarten and Daan B. Boltje and Jessalyn DeVine and Alejandro V. Silhanek and Joris Van de Vondel and Kaveh Lahabi},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2610.35737},
eprint = {2610.35737},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.35737},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Local Broadband Gigahertz Spectroscopy via SQUID-on-Tip DC Readout
AU - Senne Vervoort
AU - Lukas Nulens
AU - Julia Baumgarten
AU - Daan B. Boltje
AU - Jessalyn DeVine
AU - Alejandro V. Silhanek
AU - Joris Van de Vondel
AU - Kaveh Lahabi
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/26
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2610.35737
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.35737
AB - Superconducting microwave circuits are shaped by their local electromagnetic environment, yet standard microwave measurements do not resolve the local fields and device features that govern their behavior. Here, we combine microwave spectroscopy, nanoscale magnetic sensing, and topographic imaging in a single tapping-mode SQUID-on-tip microscope. The nonlinear Josephson response converts local GHz excitations into Shapiro steps, enabling quantitative measurements of microwave frequency signals and their excitation strength using only DC readout. Applied to a superconducting coplanar waveguide resonator, local spectroscopy reproduces the power-dependent resonance and nonlinear bifurcation observed in microwave transmission measurements. Spatially resolved measurements map the microwave response while simultaneously recording topography and static magnetic features, including vortices and Meissner screening currents. Electromagnetic simulations reveal how coupling through the superconducting probe leads limits spatial resolution and guides localized detector designs. Together, these capabilities establish a platform for correlating microwave circuit dynamics with the local structural and magnetic environment of superconducting devices.
ER -