Spin Inelastic Electron Tunneling Spectroscopy on Local Magnetic Moment Embedded in Josephson Junction

Abstract

Recent experimental conductance measurements performed on paramagnetic molecular adsorbates on a superconducting surface, using superconducting scanning tunneling microscopy techniques, are theoretically investigated. For low temperatures, we demonstrate that tunneling current assisted excitations of the local magnetic moment cannot occur for voltage biases smaller than the superconducting gap of the scanning tunneling microscope. The magnetic moment is only excited for voltages corresponding to the sum of the superconducting gap and the spin excitation energies. In excellent agreement with experiment, we show that pumping into higher excitations give additional current signatures by accumulation of density in the lower ones. Using external magnetic fields, we Zeeman split possible degeneracy and thereby resolve all excitations comprised in the magnetic moment.