Quantum Fluctuations in the Tunneling between Superconductors

Abstract

Quantum fluctuations in a microscopic model of a Josephson junction including dissipative effects, parametrized by $\ensuremath{\eta}=\frac{\ensuremath{\hbar}}{2\ensuremath{\pi}{e}^{2}R}$ with $R$ the resistance, are discussed. It is shown that the parameter space divides sharply into two regions: One in which scaling trajectories lead to a vanishing mean tunneling rate at $T=0$ and the other in which they do not.