Growth of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ thin films with enhanced superconducting properties by incorporating CaIrO3 nanoparticles

• Published in: Applied physics letters 2014-04, Vol.104 (17)
• Main Authors: De Vero, J. C., Hwang, I., Santiago, A. C. L., Chang, J., Kim, J., Sarmago, R. V., Song, J. H.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Applied physics; Bismuth strontium calcium copper oxide; Critical current density; Electrons; Lattice parameters; Nanoparticles; Properties (attributes); Pulsed laser deposition; Pulsed lasers; Superconductivity; Thin films
• ISSN: 0003-6951; 1077-3118
• DOI: 10.1063/1.4874333

We synthesized Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ (Bi-2212) thin films with incorporated CaIrO3 (Ca-iridate) nanoparticles, by using pulsed laser deposition and post-growth ex situ annealing. We found that the density of incorporated Ca-iridate strongly affected the superconducting properties and microstructure of the Bi-2212 thin films. Incorporating a low density of Ca-iridate (450 laser pulses) in the Bi-2212 improved its superconducting properties (Tc-onset = 97 K, Tc-zero = 84 K) over those of pure Bi-2212 (Tc-onset = 94 K, Tc-zero = 80 K). However, incorporating a higher density (1800 pulses) significantly reduced Tc-zero to ≈ 57 K. Incorporating a low density of Ca-iridate also decreased the c-axis lattice constant. Films with incorporated Ca-iridate exhibited greater critical current density, Jc(B), than the pure Bi-2212 film. These results indicate that incorporating low densities of Ca-iridate nanoparticles into Bi-2212 can improve its superconducting properties.