Josephson effect in Al/Bi2Se3/Al coplanar hybrid devices

The edge states of Topological Insulators (TI) are protected against backscattering, thanks to the topological properties arising from their band structure. Coupling a TI to a superconductor (S) can induce unconventional effects, including the creation of Majorana bound states (MBS). The fabrication of coplanar hybrid devices is a fundamental step to pave the way to the understanding of proximity effects in topologically non-trivial systems, and to a large variety of experiments aimed at the possible detection of MBS. We discuss the feasibility and some relevant properties of Al-Bi2Se 3-Al coplanar proximity devices. Special attention is devoted to the design of the junction, aimed at enhancing the coupling between the electrodes and the TI. © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.