Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 4, 2026

Silicon Metal-oxide-semiconductor Quantum Dots for Single-electron Pumping
Published on: June 3, 2015
Cooper-pair pump as a quantized current source
1Institut Néel, CNRS, Université Joseph Fourier, BP 166, 38042 Grenoble Cedex 9, France.
Abstract:
A new charge quantization in a phase-polarized Cooper-pair pump is proposed, based on the topological properties of its Hamiltonian ground state over a three-dimensional parameter space P. The charge is quantized using a set of paths in P covering the surface of a torus, and is a multiple of the integer Chern index c1 of this surface. This quantization is asymptotic but the pumped charge converges rapidly to the quantized value with the increase in the path frequency. The topological nature of the current makes this Cooper-pair pump implementation an excellent candidate for a metrological current standard.
Related Concept Videos
Controlled-Current Coulometry: Overview
Spin–Spin Coupling Constant: Overview
Qualitatively, any spin plus-half nucleus polarizes the spins of its electrons to the minus-half state. Consequently, the paired electron in the hydrogen–carbon bond must have a...
Induced Electric Dipoles
Since the absolute value of potential energy holds no physical meaning, its zero value can be chosen as per...
ATP Driven Pumps II: P-type Pumps
A typical P-type pump has three cytosolic domains: nucleotide-binding (N), phosphorylation (P), and activator (A) domains. These domains are connected to the membrane-spanning helices by short amino acid segments. ATP hydrolysis and covalent phosphoenzyme intermediate formation are crucial parts of the catalytic cycle. At the highly...
Magnetic Force Between Two Parallel Currents
The force exerted by the magnetic field due to the first conductor over a finite length of the second conductor is given as the product of the current in the second conductor and the vector product of the length vector along the current element and the field due to the first conductor. According to the...
Charge and Current
Charge is an inherent property of the atomic particles that make up matter and is measured in units called coulombs (C). Matter is composed of atoms, each consisting of electrons, protons, and neutrons. Electrons have a negative charge (-e), while protons...

