Dependence of the Macroscopic Quantum Tunneling Rate on Josephson Junction Area

Abstract

We have carried out systematic Macroscopic Quantum Tunneling (MQT) experiments on Nb/Al-AlO_x/Nb Josephson junctions (JJs) of different areas. Employing on-chip lumped element inductors, we have decoupled the JJs from their environmental line impedances at the frequencies relevant for MQT. This allowed us to study the crossover from the thermal to the quantum regime in the low damping limit. A clear reduction of the crossover temperature with increasing JJ size is observed and found to be in excellent agreement with theory. All junctions were realized on the same chip and were thoroughly characterized before the quantum measurements.