Microwave photon generation in a doubly tunable superconducting resonator

We have created a doubly tunable resonator, with the intention to simulate relativistic motion of the resonator boundaries in real space. Our device is a superconducting coplanar-waveguide microwave resonator, with fundamental resonant frequency ω ₁ /(2π) ∼ 5 GHz. Both of its ends are terminated to ground via dc-SQUIDs, which serve as magnetic-flux-controlled inductances. Applying a flux to either SQUID allows the tuning of ω ₁ /(2π) by approximately 700 MHz. Using two separate on-chip magnetic-flux lines, we modulate the SQUIDs with two tones of equal frequency, close to 2ω ₁. We observe photon generation, at ω ₁, above a certain pump amplitude threshold. By varying the relative phase of the two pumps we are able to control this threshold, in good agreement with a theoretical model. At the same time, some of our observations deviate from the theoretical predictions, which we attribute to parasitic couplings resulting in current driving of the SQUIDs.