Enhancing Single Electron Pumps for Ampere Realization: Characterization of Scalable Silicon Devices

We present preliminary results on the characterization of silicon-based devices for use as single-electron pumps (SEPs). We highlight their performance and initial electron pumping data, underscoring the optimistic potential for future advancements in electrical quantum metrology. Indeed, the 2019 redefinition of the SI system, anchored to fundamental constants like the elementary charge (e) and Planck constant (h), transformed electrical quantum metrology by enabling the direct realization of electrical units—Ampere, Volt, and Ohm—through quantum effects. The Volt and Ohm are routinely realized via the Josephson and quantum Hall effects and have been fully adopted in the metrology toolbox. The Ampere, lagging in precision, is directly realized at low currents using SEPs below a few hundred picoAmps and indirectly above the microamp, leaving the nanoAmp range as a metrological gap. The international AQuanTEC project that supports this research, funded by the EU, Euramet, and partner institutions, aims to bridge this gap by improving the precision and current output of SEPs, thereby advancing the field of electrical quantum metrology. Our approach leverages silicon devices initially developed for spin qubits, offering excellent scalability and opportunities for parallelization.