Effect of Nano-SiC and Nano-Si Doping on Critical Current Density of MgB_2

The discovery of superconductivity in magnesium diboride (MgB2) has opened up a new field in materials science research. It offers a possibility of a new class of high performance superconducting materials for practical applications because of the relatively low cost of fabrication, high critical current densities (Jc) and fields, large coherence length, absence of weak links, higher Tc(TC = 39K) compared with Nb3Sn and Nb-Ti alloys (two or four times that of Nb,,Sn and Nb-Ti alloys). However, the weak flux pinning in the magnetic field remains a major challenge. This paper reports the most interesting results on nanomaterial (SiC and Si) doping in magnesium diboride. The high density of nano-scale defects introduced by doping is responsible for the enhanced pinning. The fabrication method, critical current density, microstructures, flux pinning and cost for magnesium diboride bulks, wires and tapes are also discussed. It is believed that high performance SiC doped MgB2 will have a great potential for m     

Effect of Nano－SiC and Nano－Si Doping on Critical Current Density of MgB2

The discovery of superconductivity in magnesium diboride (MgB2) has opened up a new field in materials science research. It offers a possibility of a new class of high performance superconducting materials for practical applications because of the relatively low cost of fabrication, high critical current densities (Jc)and fields, large coherence length, absence of Weak links, higher Tc (Tc = 39 K) compared with Nb3Sn and Nb-Ti alloys (two or four times that of Nb3Sn and Nb-Ti alloys). However, the weak flux pinning in the magnetic field remains a major challenge. This paper reports the most interesting results on nenomaterial (SiC and Si) doping in magnesium diboride. The high density of nano-scele defects introduced by doping is responsible for the enhanced pinning. The fabrication method, critical current density, microstructures, flux pinning and cost for magnesium diboride bulks, wires and tapes are also discussed. It is believed that high performance SiC doped MgB2 will have a great potential for many practical applications at 5K to 25K up to 5T.     

Enhancement of the high-magnetic-field critical current density of superconducting MgB2 by proton irradiation

Magnesium diboride, MgB2, has a relatively high superconducting transition temperature, placing it between the families of low- and high-temperature (copper oxide based) superconductors. Supercurrent flow in MgB2 is unhindered by grain boundaries, making it potentially attractive for technological applications in the temperature range 20-30 K. But in the bulk material, the critical current density (Jc) drops rapidly with increasing magnetic field strength. The magnitude and field dependence of the critical current are related to the presence of structural defects that can 'pin' the quantized magnetic vortices that permeate the material, and a lack of natural defects in MgB2 may be responsible for the rapid decline of Jc with increasing field strength. Here we show that modest levels of atomic disorder induced by proton irradiation enhance the pinning of vortices, thereby significantly increasing Jc at high field strengths. We anticipate that either chemical doping or mechanical processing should generate similar levels of disorder, and so achieve performance that is technologically attractive in an economically viable way.     

Superconducting Properties and Microstructure in MgB2 Bulks, Wires and Tapes

We prepared a series of MgB2 bulk samples under different temperatures, holding time and increasing rates in temperature by the solid state reaction. The thermodynamic behavior and phase formation in the Mg-B system were studied by using DTA, XRD and SEM. The results indicate that the formation of the MgB2 phase is very fast and the high increasing rate in temperature is necessary to obtain high quality MgB2. In addition, the effects of the Zr-doping in Mg1-xZrxB2 bulk samples fabricated by the solid state reaction at ambient pressure on phase compositions, microstructure and flux pinning behavior were investigated by using XRD, SQUID magnetometer, SEM and TEM. Critical current density Jc can be significantly enhanced by the Zr-doping and the best data are achieved in Mg0.9Zr0.1B2. For this sample, Jc values are remarkably improved to 1. 83 × 106 A/cm2 in self-field and 5. 51 × 105 A/cm2in 1T at 20K. Also, high quality MgB2/Ta/Cu wires and tapes with and without Ti-doping, MgB2/Fe wires and 18 filamen     

Vortex dynamics in superconducting MgB2 and prospects for applications

The recently discovered superconductor magnesium diboride, MgB2, has a transition temperature, Tc, approaching 40 K, placing it intermediate between the families of low- and high-temperature superconductors. In practical applications, superconductors are permeated by quantized vortices of magnetic flux. When a supercurrent flows, there is dissipation of energy unless these vortices are 'pinned' in some way, and so inhibited from moving under the influence of the Lorentz force. Such vortex motion ultimately determines the critical current density, Jc, which the superconductor can support. Vortex behaviour has proved to be more complicated in high-temperature superconductors than in low-temperature superconductors and, although this has stimulated extensive theoretical and experimental research, it has also impeded applications. Here we describe the vortex behaviour in MgB2, as reflected in Jc and in the vortex creep rate, S, the latter being a measure of how fast the 'persistent' supercurrents decay. Our results show that naturally occurring grain boundaries are highly transparent to supercurrents, a desirable property which contrasts with the behaviour of the high-temperature superconductors. On the other hand, we observe a steep, practically deleterious decline in Jc with increasing magnetic field, which is likely to reflect the high degree of crystalline perfection in our samples, and hence a low vortex pinning energy.     

Doping effects of ZrC and ZrB2 in the powder-in-tube processed MgB2 tapes

We have investigated the effects of ZrC and ZrB2 doping on the superconducting properties of the powder-in-tube processed MgB2/Fe tapes. Sam- ples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM/EDX), transport and magnetic measurements. We confirmed the fol- lowing quite different roles of ZrC and ZrB2 in MgB2. ZrC doping was found to decrease the transport critical current density (Jc) at 4.2 K, while the critical temperature (Tc) kept constant. In contrast, the Jc values in magnetic fields were enhanced greatly by the ZrB2 addition, which resulted in a decrease in Tc by only 0.5 K. The reason for different effects of two dopants is also discussed.     

High critical current density and enhanced irreversibility field in superconducting MgB2 thin films

The discovery of superconductivity at 39 K in magnesium diboride offers the possibility of a new class of low-cost, high-performance superconducting materials for magnets and electronic applications. This compound has twice the transition temperature of Nb3Sn and four times that of Nb-Ti alloy, and the vital prerequisite of strongly linked current flow has already been demonstrated. One possible drawback, however, is that the magnetic field at which superconductivity is destroyed is modest. Furthermore, the field which limits the range of practical applications-the irreversibility field H*(T)-is approximately 7 T at liquid helium temperature (4.2 K), significantly lower than about 10 T for Nb-Ti (ref. 6) and approximately 20 T for Nb3Sn (ref. 7). Here we show that MgB2 thin films that are alloyed with oxygen can exhibit a much steeper temperature dependence of H*(T) than is observed in bulk materials, yielding an H* value at 4.2 K greater than 14 T. In addition, very high critical current densities at 4.2 K are achieved: 1 MA cm-2 at 1 T and 105 A cm-2 at 10 T. These results demonstrate that MgB2 has potential for high-field superconducting applications.     

Strongly linked current flow in polycrystalline forms of the superconductor MgB2

The discovery of superconductivity at 39 K in magnesium diboride, MgB2, raises many issues, a critical one being whether this material resembles a high-temperature copper oxide superconductor or a low-temperature metallic superconductor in terms of its behaviour in strong magnetic fields. Although the copper oxides exhibit very high transition temperatures, their in-field performance is compromized by their large anisotropy, the result of which is to restrict high bulk current densities to a region much less than the full magnetic-field-temperature (H-T) space over which superconductivity is found. Moreover, the weak coupling across grain boundaries makes transport current densities in untextured polycrystalline samples low and strongly sensitive to magnetic field. Here we report that, despite the multiphase, untextured, microscale, subdivided nature of our MgB2 samples, supercurrents flow throughout the material without exhibiting strong sensitivity to weak magnetic fields. Our combined magnetization, magneto-optical, microscopy and X-ray investigations show that the supercurrent density is mostly determined by flux pinning, rather than by the grain boundary connectivity. Our results therefore suggest that this new superconductor class is not compromized by weak-link problems, a conclusion of significance for practical applications if higher temperature analogues of this compound can be discovered.     

Superconductivity at 39 K in magnesium diboride

In the light of the tremendous progress that has been made in raising the transition temperature of the copper oxide superconductors (for a review, see ref. 1), it is natural to wonder how high the transition temperature, Tc, can be pushed in other classes of materials. At present, the highest reported values of Tc for non-copper-oxide bulk superconductivity are 33 K in electron-doped Cs(x)Rb(y)C60 (ref. 2), and 30 K in Ba(1-x)K(x)BiO3 (ref. 3). (Hole-doped C60 was recently found to be superconducting with a Tc as high as 52 K, although the nature of the experiment meant that the supercurrents were confined to the surface of the C60 crystal, rather than probing the bulk.) Here we report the discovery of bulk superconductivity in magnesium diboride, MgB2. Magnetization and resistivity measurements establish a transition temperature of 39 K, which we believe to be the highest yet determined for a non-copper-oxide bulk superconductor.     

Superconductivity in MgB2

In January of 2001 the superconductivity of the compound MgB2 with a critical temperature Tc of up to 39 K was discovered. This Tc is the highest in all intermetallic compound and alloy superconductors. MgB2 has a simple structure and its manufacturing capital cost is lower, therefore it could become a practical superconductor in the future. The recent progress is reviewed here which covers the progress in electronic structure, high Tc mechanism, superconducting parameters (Debye temperature, specific heat coefficient of electron, critical fields, coherent length, penetration depth, energy gap, critical current and relaxation rate of flux). Moreover the issue on power transmission is discussed.     

High critical current density in powder-in-tube processed MgB2/Ta/Cu wire

The magnetization of dense MgB2/Ta/Cu wires prepared by the powder-in-tube method is measured by a SQUID magnetometer. The results indicate that the critical temperature of MgB2/Ta/Cu is around 38.4 K with a sharp transition width of 0.6 K. The MgB2/Ta/Cu wire shows a strong flux pinning and the critical current density is higher than 105 A/cm2 (5 K, self-field) and 104 A/cm2 (20 K, 1 T). Also, the irreversibility field of the sample reaches 6.6 T at 5 K.     

Superconductivity at 43 K in SmFeAsO1-xFx

Since the discovery of high-transition-temperature (high-T(c)) superconductivity in layered copper oxides, extensive effort has been devoted to exploring the origins of this phenomenon. A T(c) higher than 40 K (about the theoretical maximum predicted from Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer theory), however, has been obtained only in the copper oxide superconductors. The highest reported value for non-copper-oxide bulk superconductivity is T(c) = 39 K in MgB(2) (ref. 2). The layered rare-earth metal oxypnictides LnOFeAs (where Ln is La-Nd, Sm and Gd) are now attracting attention following the discovery of superconductivity at 26 K in the iron-based LaO(1-x)F(x)FeAs (ref. 3). Here we report the discovery of bulk superconductivity in the related compound SmFeAsO(1-x)F(x), which has a ZrCuSiAs-type structure. Resistivity and magnetization measurements reveal a transition temperature as high as 43 K. This provides a new material base for studying the origin of high-temperature superconductivity.     

High-Tc superconducting materials for electric power applications.

Large-scale superconducting electric devices for power industry depend critically on wires with high critical current densities at temperatures where cryogenic losses are tolerable. This restricts choice to two high-temperature cuprate superconductors, (Bi,Pb)2Sr2Ca2Cu3Ox and YBa2Cu3Ox, and possibly to MgB2, recently discovered to superconduct at 39 K. Crystal structure and material anisotropy place fundamental restrictions on their properties, especially in polycrystalline form. So far, power applications have followed a largely empirical, twin-track approach of conductor development and construction of prototype devices. The feasibility of superconducting power cables, magnetic energy-storage devices, transformers, fault current limiters and motors, largely using (Bi,Pb)2Sr2Ca2Cu3Ox conductor, is proven. Widespread applications now depend significantly on cost-effective resolution of fundamental materials and fabrication issues, which control the production of low-cost, high-performance conductors of these remarkable compounds.     

The origin of multiple superconducting gaps in MgB2

Magnesium diboride, MgB2, has the highest transition temperature (T(c) = 39 K) of the known metallic superconductors. Whether the anomalously high T(c) can be described within the conventional BCS (Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer) framework has been debated. The key to understanding superconductivity lies with the 'superconducting energy gap' associated with the formation of the superconducting pairs. Recently, the existence of two kinds of superconducting gaps in MgB2 has been suggested by several experiments; this is in contrast to both conventional and high-T(c) superconductors. A clear demonstration of two gaps has not yet been made because the previous experiments lacked the ability to resolve the momentum of the superconducting electrons. Here we report direct experimental evidence for the two-band superconductivity in MgB2, by separately observing the superconducting gaps of the sigma and pi bands (as well as a surface band). The gaps have distinctly different sizes, which unambiguously establishes MgB2 as a two-gap superconductor.     

高纯度新型超导体MgB_2的制备工艺研究

用固相反应法制备了 T =39K的新型超导体 Mg B2 ,用 X射线衍射研究了单相 Mg B2 的实验室制备过程 ,探讨了煅烧温度、煅烧时间以及煅烧环境对产物纯度的影响 ,为进行高纯度Mg B2 化合物的工业化生产提供了原始资料 .     

Loss of superconductivity with the addition of Al to MgB2 and a structural transition in Mg1-x AlxB2

The basic magnetic and electronic properties of most binary compounds have been well known for decades. The recent discovery of superconductivity at 39 K in the simple binary ceramic compound magnesium diboride, MgB2, was therefore surprising. Indeed, this material has been known and structurally characterized since the mid 1950s (ref. 2), and is readily available from chemical suppliers (it is commonly used as a starting material for chemical metathesis reactions). Here we show that the addition of electrons to MgB2, through partial substitution of Al for Mg, results in the loss of superconductivity. Associated with the Al substitution is a subtle but distinct structural transition, reflected in the partial collapse of the spacing between boron layers near an Al content of 10 per cent. This indicates that superconducting MgB2 is poised very near a structural instability at slightly higher electron concentrations.     

超导的纯电子机制

从电子晶格的相互作用，受晶格屏蔽的电子间的相互作用，以及电子自旋的磁力作用等纯电子机制阐明正常超导和高温超导共同的机理，说明MgB2的超导和陶瓷性超导的机理相同，都是由于自由电子少的原因，以此对BCS公式作以修正，并预言Li2O的临界温度高于MgB2。     

Enhanced supercurrent density in polycrystalline YBa2Cu3O(7-delta) at 77 K from calcium doping of grain boundaries

With the discovery of high-temperature superconductivity, it seemed that the vision of superconducting power cables operating at the boiling point of liquid nitrogen (77 K) was close to realization. But it was soon found that the critical current density Jc of the supercurrents that can pass through these polycrystalline materials without destroying superconductivity is remarkably small. In many materials, Jc is suppressed at grain boundaries, by phenomena such as interface charging and bending of the electronic band structure. Partial replacement ('doping') of the yttrium in YBa2Cu3O(7-delta) with calcium has been used to increase grain-boundary Jc values substantially, but only at temperatures much lower than 77 K (ref. 9). Here we show that preferentially overdoping the grain boundaries, relative to the grains themselves, yields values of Jc at 77 K that far exceed previously published values. Our results indicate that grain-boundary doping is a viable approach for producing a practical, cost-effective superconducting power cable operating at liquid-nitrogen temperatures.     

Fabrication of MgB_2 superconducting films by different methods

MgB2 superconducting films have been successfully fabricated on single crystal MgO(111) and c-AL2O3 substrates by different methods. The film deposited by pulsed laser deposition is c-axis oriented with zero resistance transition temperature of 38.4 K, while the other two films fabricated by chemical vapor deposition and electrophoresis are c-axis textured with the zero resistance transition temperature of 38 K and 39 K, respectively. Magnetization hysteresis measurements yield critical current density Jc of 107 A/cm2 at 15 K in zero field for the thin film and of 105 A/cm2 for the thick film. For the thin film deposited by chemical vapor deposition, the microwave surface resistance at 10 K is found to be as low as 100μΩ, which is comparable with that of a high-quality high-temperature superconducting thin film of YBCO.     

Special variation of infiltration-growth processed bulk YBCO fabricated using new liquid source: Ba3Cu5O8 (1:1.3) and YbBa2Cu3Oy

Utilization of novel materials, particularly high-Tc (critical temperature) superconductors, is essential to pursue the United Nations' Sustainable Goals, as well as to meet the increasing worldwide demand for clean and carbon-free electric power technologies. Superconduct-ing magnets are beneficial in several real-life applications including transportation, energy production, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and drug delivery systems. To achieve high performance, one must develop uniform, large-grain, infiltration-growth (IG) processed bulk YBa2Cu3Oy (Y-123) super-magnets. In this study, we report the magnetic and microstructural properties of a large-grain, top-seeded, IG-pro-cessed Y-123 pellet, which is 20 mm in diameter and 6 mm in height; the pellet is produced utilizing liquid Yb-123+Ba3Cu5O8 as the liquid source. All the samples cut from the top of the bulk exhibit a sharp superconducting transition (approximately 1 K wide) with the onset Tc of approximately 90 K. However, in the samples cut from the bottom surface, the onset Tc values slightly decreased to between 88 and 90 K, al-though still exhibiting a sharp superconducting transition. The top and bottom samples exhibited the highest remnant value of Jc (critical cur-rent density) at 77 K H//c-axis of 50 and 55 kA/cm2, respectively. The remnant Jc and irreversibility field values significantly fluctuated, being fairly low in some bottom samples. Scanning electron microscopy identified nanometer size Y-211 (Y2BaCuO5) secondary-phase particles dis-persed in the Y-123 matrix. Energy-dispersive spectroscopy clarified that the decreased both Tc and Jc for the bottom samples were attributed to liquid phase dispersion within the Y-123 phase.