Nonequilibrium Josephson-like effects in wide mesoscopic SNS junctions

Mesoscopic superconducting-normal-metal-superconduct (SNS) junctions with a large separation between the superconducting electrodes (i.e, wide junctions) exhibit nonequilibrium supercurrents, even at temperatures for which the equilibrium Josephson effect is exponentially small. The second harmonic of the Josephson frequency dominates these currents, as observed in recent experiments. A simple description of these effects, in the spirit of the resistively shunted junction model, is suggested here. It is used to calculate de I-V characteristics, and to examine the effects of various types of noise and of external microwave radiation (Shapiro steps). It is found that the nonequilibrium supercurrents are excited when the junction is driven by a de bias or an ac bias, or even by external noise. In the case of junctions which are also long in the direction perpendicular to the current flow, thermodynamic phase fluctuations (thermal noise) alone can drive the quasiparticles out of local equilibrium. The magnetic flux is then predicted to be trapped in units of Phi(0)/2 = hc/4e. (C) 1999 Academic Press.