Chaos and catastrophe near the plasma frequency in the RF-biased Josephson junction

The authors examine two forms of complex behavior in the RF-biased junction that occur at bias frequencies near the plasma frequency: the chaotic instabilities that influence the design of voltage standards; and a cusp catastrophe. Using digital simulation the authors determine how chaos and catastrophe affect the zero-voltage part of the I-V (current voltage) curve as a function of the RF amplitude and frequency. In particular, they show that chaotic instabilities result in discontinuities in the DC-bias range of the zero-voltage state and the cusp catastrophes result in two dynamically different zero-voltage states that exist over the same DC-bias range. They also report the experimental verification of the former effect