Dephasing of conduction electrons by magnetic impurities in Cu/Ni and Cu/Cr samples: Influence of spin-glass transition on the superconducting proximity effect

The dependence of the superconducting proximity effect on the amount of magnetic impurities in the normal part of Andreev interferometers has been studied experimentally. The dephasing rates obtained from fitting experimental data to quasiclassical theory of the proximity effect are consistent with the spin flip scattering from Cr impurities forming a local moment in the Cu host. In contrast, Ni impurities do not form a local moment in Cu and as a result there is no extra dephasing from Ni as long as Cu/Ni alloy remain paramagnetic.