Superconducting-to-Normal Switching and I-V Experiments showing Multiple Tunneling Channels in a Multi-Gap Superconductor

Magnesium diboride is a BCS superconductor with many interesting properties, notably its two superconducting energy gaps associated with the disconnected sheets of its Fermi surface. A heterojunction, using the dual-gap MgB$_{2}$ and a single-gap superconductor as its superconducting electrodes, provides a system well-suited for exploring the unique properties of MgB$_{2}$, by exhibiting multiple tunneling channels. We present data from superconducting-to-normal state switching experiments and tunneling spectroscopy experiments to temperatures as low as 20mK that indicate multiple tunneling channels in this multiple-gap superconductor. We describe features of escape rates and I-V curves that may be consistent with recent published theoretical work on macroscopic quantum tunneling in multi-gap superconductors.