Variable transformer for controllable flux coupling

We discuss and demonstrate a prototype of superconducting transformer with a flux transfer function that can be varied in a wide range, by acting on a control parameter. The device is realized by inserting a small hysteretic superconducting quantum interference device (dc-SQUID) with unshunted junctions, working as a Josephson junction with flux-controlled critical current, parallel to a superconducting transformer; by varying the magnetic flux coupled to the dc-SQUID, the transfer function for the flux coupled to the transformer can be varied. This feature can prove particularly appealing in the field of quantum computing, where it could be exploited to achieve a controllable magnetic coupling among flux-based qubits. Measurements carried out on a prototype at $4.2\mathrm{K}$ show a reduction factor of about 30 between the “on” and the “off” states. We discuss the system characteristics and the experimental results.