Nonlocal measurement of quasiparticle charge and energy relaxation in proximitized semiconductor nanowires using quantum dots

The nonlocal conductance of semiconductor-superconductor heterostructures is increasingly used to study the bulk properties of such systems. However, the microscopic details governing this conductance are poorly understood. Here, the authors fabricate a three-terminal device, based on an InSb nanowire proximitized by a thin Al layer. They show that the measured nonlocal conductance is a nonequilibrium process carried by charge-neutral quasiparticles, taking place at the energy of the superconducting gap.