Increase of phase retrapping effects in the switching rate from the finite voltage state of the underdamped intrinsic Josephson junctions

We report a detailed study of the phase switching rate from the first to the fourth switch for a small stack of Bi₂Sr₂-CaCu₂O_y intrinsic Josephson junctions (IJJs). Experimental results were analyzed by using the conventional singlejunction model including the thermally-activated phase escape and the multiple phase retrapping. It is shown that the phase retrapping effects are more prominent for higher order switches, even for the underdamped IJJs showing a large hysteresis in the current-voltage characteristics. This clearly suggests that the tilted washboard potential representing the phase switch from the finite voltage state in IJJs can be influenced by a rapid oscillation generated in a phase-switched junction.