Researchers have demonstrated a novel method for manipulating current flow within superconducting thin film strips using strategically placed control wires. Alex Gurevich from Old Dominion University, along with co-authors, detail how these wires engineer supercurrent density profiles, effectively eliminating current crowding, a common limitation in wider strips. This research is significant because it presents a pathway to create single-photon detectors and superconducting diodes substantially wider than conventional limits, and crucially, allows for in situ tuning of detector sensitivity via control wire currents. By modelling thermally-activated vortex behaviour and solving the London and Ginzburg-Landau equations, the team showcase structures capable of achieving…