Small superconducting islands can exhibit charge quantization, where Coulomb interactions compete with Cooper pairing. Using scanning tunneling spectroscopy, we probe this interplay by measuring the charging energy ($E_C$) and the pairing energy ($\Delta$) of individual nano-islands. Below a critical island size, where $E_C > \Delta$, we observe a crossover between even and odd parity ground states. By applying controlled voltage pulses, we continuously tune the island's electrostatic potential and map the full charge-parity landscape. These results demonstrate tunable superconducting ground states, offering a potential platform for qubit design and control.

Categories: cond-mat.mes-hall

Local control of parity and charge in nanoscale superconducting lead islands