Shock wave working of high-T c materials

Abstract

The properties of high T_c-ceramics (Y-123, Bi-1112, Bi-4334, Bi-4457, (Bi-Pb)-4457) under shock loading and subsequent heat treatment were investigated. The peculiarities of their structure, tecture creation, changes of superconductivity parameters depending on loading conditions at P～ 10GPa Were revealed, and regimes of heat treatment were determined. The possibilities of obtaining crack-free cylindrical superconducting shields as well as strong metal high-T^cceramic joints were demonstrated.     

A sensitive, rapid ferricyanide-mediated toxicity bioassay developed using Escherichia coli

A need for rapid toxicity techniques has seen recent research into developing new microbiological assays and characterising their toxicity responses using a range of substances. A microbiological bioassay that determines changes in ferricyanide-mediated respiration for toxicity measurement (FM-TOX) shows particular promise. The development and optimisation of an improved FM-TOX method, incorporating novel features, is described using Escherichia coli as the biocatalyst. Omission of an exogenous carbon source, used in previously described FM-TOX assays, substantially improves the assay sensitivity. In addition, the development of a two-step procedure (toxicant exposure followed by determination of microbial respiratory activity) was found to enhance the inhibition of E. coli by 3,5-dichlorophenol and four other toxicants, compared to single-step procedures. Other assay parameters, such as the ferricyanide concentration, exposure times and optical density of the biocatalyst were also optimised, sometimes based on practical aspects. Toxicity tests were carried out using the adopted technique on both organic and inorganic toxicants, with classic sigmoid-shaped dose-response curves observed, as well as some non-standard responses. IC₅₀ data is presented for a number of common toxicants. The optimised assay provides a good foundation for further toxicity testing using E. coli, as well as the potential for expanding the technique to utilise other bacteria with complementary toxicity responses, thereby allowing use of the assay in a range of applications.     

Resonant States in High-Temperature Superconductors with Impurities

A microscopic theory of resonant states for the Zn-doped CuO₂ plane in the superconducting phase is formulated in the effective t–J model. In the model derived from the original p–d model, Zn impurities are considered as vacancies for the d states at Cu sites. In the superconducting phase, in addition to the local static perturbation induced by the vacancy, a dynamical perturbation appears that results in a frequency-dependent perturbation matrix. Using the T-matrix formalism for the Green's functions in terms of the Hubbard operators, we calculate the local density of electronic states with d, p, and s symmetries.     

The dynamics of disordered systems and the motion of vortices in disordered type-II superconductors

We develop a field theoretical method which permits us to study the dynamics of interacting particles in disordered systems. In particular, making use of a Hartree-type approximation, we obtain a self-consistent system of equations for disorder averaged quantities. The method is first applied to a single particle on a rough surface. Then, we calculate the current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of a type-II superconductor in the flux flow regime. Finally, the structure of the steps is discussed which arise in the I-V-characteristics when a small ac field is superimposed on the constant voltage. These may serve as a probe for incipient melting of the vortex lattice.     

Thermal properties of barium complexes used for depositing thin films of YBa2Cu3O7 superconductors

The thermal properties of several barium containing complexes are compared by using thermogravimetric analysis and solids probe mass spectrometry. The properties of complexes containing flourinated and non-fluorinated β-diketonates with and without the presence of a polyether to occupy additional barium coordination sites are compared. Barium complex thermal properties are heavily dependent on the structure of the β-diketones and polyether comprising the complex. Barium complexes containing fluorinated ligands are better suited for chemical vapour deposition of barium than complexes containing non-fluorinated ligands because they efficiently evolve vapours containing barium at lower temperatures.     

An SIS waveguide heterodyne receiver for 600 HGz-635 GHz

A waveguide SIS heterodyne receiver using a Nb/AlO_X/Nb junction has been built for astronomical observations of molecular transitions in the frequency range 600 GHz - 635 GHz, and has been successfully used at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory (CSO). We report double sideband (DSB) receiver noise temperatures as low as 245 K at 600 GHz -610 GHz, and near 300 K over the rest of the bandwidth. These results confirm that SIS quasiparticle mixers work well at submillimeter-wave frequencies corresponding to photon energies of at least 90% of the superconductor energy gap. In addition, we have systematically investigated the effect on the receiver performance of the overlap between first-order and second-order photon steps of opposite sign at these frequencies. The receiver noise increases by as much as 40% in the region of overlap. We infer potential limitations for operating submillimeter-wave Nb/AlO_x/Nb mixers.     

Complex conductivity in high-Tc single crystal superconductors

The electromagnetic surface impedance of single crystal high-T_c superconductors has been examined within the framework of the two-fluid model and the hypothesis that the e m field modulates the partial concentrations of both normal and condensate fluids. A comparison with experimental data is reported.     

Magnetic field dependence ofT c and temperature dependence ofH c2 in layered superconductors with open normal state Fermi surface

A theoretical framework for treating the effects of magnetic fieldH on the pairing theory of superconductivity is considered, where the field is taken in an arbitrary direction with respect to crystal axes. This is applicable to closed, as well as open normal state Fermi surface (FS), including simple layered metals. The orbital effects of the magnetic field are treated semiclassically while retaining the full anisotropic paramagnetic contribution. Explicit calculations are presented in the limits |H| → |H _c2(T)|,T ∼ 0 andT →T _c(|H|), |H| ∼ 0. Effects of weak nonmagnetic impurity scattering, without vertex corrections, have also been taken into account in a phenomenological way. The final results for the case of open FS and layered materials are found to differ considerably from those of the closed FS. For example, an important parameter,h(T=0)=|H_c2(0)|/[-Tδ|H _c2 T|δT]_T{s0} for the case of a FS open ink _z-direction with thek _z-bandwidth, 4t ₃, very small compared to the Fermi energy,E _F, is close to 0.5906, compared to 0.7273 for the closed FS, in the clean limit. Analytical results are given for the magnetic field dependence ofT _c and the temperature dependence of H _c2 for a model of layered superconductors with widely open FS. For a set of band structure parameters for YBa₂Cu₃O₇ used elsewhere, we find reasonable values for the upper critical fieldH _c2(0), the slope (dH _c2/dT)_{T c0}, anisotropic coherence lengths ζ_i(T=0),i=x, y, z, and (dT _c/d|H|)_{|H| → 0}.     

Effect of Fe substitution on the thermal expansion of the highT c superconductor Y1Ba2Cu3O y

Thermal expansion measurements have been carried out on Fe substituted superconducting compounds Y₁Ba₂(Cu_1−x Fe _x )₃O _y (0<x<4%) using a high resolution dilatometer employing the three terminal capacitance technique. The experimental set up is sensitive enough to detect changes in α of less than 10⁻⁸K⁻¹. Results show that the jump Δα in the coefficient of linear thermal expansion at the superconducting transition temperature,T _c, increases almost linearly with Fe concentration. The normal state thermal expansion coefficient α first decreases, attains a minimum value aroundx=1% and then increases for higher Fe concentrations. The oxygen content per unit formula is almost constant up tox=1% and then increases rapidly withx. It has also been observed that the anomalous behaviour of α around 260 K observed by Meingastet al [22] for Fe concentrationx=5% is due to inadequate annealing of the sample.