Epitaxial growth of YSZ buffer layer for YBa2Cu3O7−δ coated conductor by reel-to-reel pulsed laser deposition

Yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) buffer layers were deposited on CeO₂ buffered biaxially textured Ni-W substrate by reel-to-reel pulsed laser deposition (PLD) for the application of YBa₂Cu₃O_7−δ (YBCO) coated conductor and the influence of substrate temperature and laser energy on their crystallinity and microstructure were studied. YSZ thin films were prepared with substrate temperature ranging from 600 to 800 °C and laser energy ranging from 120 to 350 mJ. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used to investigate how thin film structure and surface morphology depend on these parameters. It was found that the YSZ films grown at substrate temperature below 600 °C or laser energy above 300 mJ showed amorphous phase, the (0 0 1) preferred orientation and the crystallinity of the YSZ films were improved with increasing the temperature, but the surface roughness increased simultaneously, the SEM images of YSZ films on CeO₂/NiW tapes showed surface morphologies without micro-cracks. Based on these results, we developed the epitaxial PLD-YSZ buffer layer process at the tape transfer speed of 3-4 m/h by the reel-to-reel system for 100 m class long YBCO tapes.     

Texture analysis of RF-sputtered CeO2 buffer layers and superconducting MOD-YBCO films

CeO₂ buffer layers were deposited on YSZ single-crystal substrates using an RF-sputtering method. The development of crystalline textures of sputtered CeO₂ films at different sputtering pressure and their effects on YBCO films, deposited by Metal Organic Deposition (MOD), were investigated. Both CeO₂ and subsequent YBCO films grew well epitaxially. The relative XRD peak intensities of CeO₂ (2 0 0) to substrate YSZ (2 0 0) increased with deposition pressure in the range of 3–5 mTorr and were inversely proportional to the θ–2θ scan FWHM values of CeO₂ (2 0 0). Also, the reaction layers of BaCeO₃ were thicker in the samples with lower CeO₂ (2 0 0) intensities and poor out-of-plane alignment when CeO₂ were deposited at the lower pressure of 3.3 mTorr. It is noted, however, that the superconducting layer grew well epitaxially on these BaCeO₃ layers, possibly due to the epitaxial relation between CeO₂ and YBCO. The superconducting critical currents of MOD-YBCO films showed an increasing tendency as both the Δ2θ (CeO₂) and BaCeO₃ peak intensities decreased.     

Research on CeO2 cap layer for YBCO-coated conductor

Two groups of coated conductor samples with different thicknesses of CeO2 cap layers deposited by pulsed laser deposition （PLD） under the same conditions have been studied. Of them, one group is of CeO2 films, which are deposited on stainless steel （SS） tapes coated by IBAD-YSZ （IBAD-YSZ/SS）, and the other group is of CeO2/YSZ/Y2O3 multilayers, which are deposited on NiW substrates by PLD for the fabrication of YBCO-coated conductor through the RABiTS approach. YBCO film is then deposited on the tops of both types of buffer layers by PLD. The effects of the thickness of the CeO2 film on the texture of the CeO2 film and the critical current density （Jc） of the YBCO film are analysed. For the case of CeO2 film on IBAD-YSZ/SS, there appears a self-epitaxy effect with increasing thickness of the CeO2 film. For CeO2/YSZ/Y2O3/NiW, in which the buffer layers are deposited by PLD, there occurs no self-epitaxy effect, and the optimal thickness of CeO2 is about 50 nm. The surface morphologies of the two groups of samples are examined by SEM.     

Preparation of YBCO film for microwave filter using a hybrid route

Pure (0 0 l)-textured CeO₂ buffer layers were deposited on single crystal r-plane Al₂O₃ (1–102) substrate by a hybrid process which was combined with magnetron sputtering for the seed layer and metal–organic deposition for the subsequent layer. Strongly c-axis oriented YBCO films were deposited on the CeO₂ buffered r-cut Al₂O₃ (1–102) substrates. Atomic force microscope and scanning electronic microscopy results show that the prepared buffers and YBCO films are relatively dense and smooth. The critical current of the YBCO films exceeds 1.5 MA/cm² at 77 K with the superconducting transition temperature of 90 K. The surface resistivity is as below as 14 μΩ at 1 GHz frequency. The results demonstrate that the hybrid route is a very promising method to prepare YBCO films for microwave application, which can combine the sputtering advantage for preparing of highly c-axis oriented CeO₂ buffer layers and the advantages of metal–organic deposition with rapid processing, low cost and easy preparation of large-area YBCO films.     

Some aspects of interactions between HTSC-films and substrates

Different aspects of the interaction between YBa₂Cu₂O_y(YBCO) films and (100) ZrO₂〈Y〉 (YSZ) substrates have been investigated. It was determined using X-ray diffraction methods that the structural mismatch between the film and the substrate leads to a film deformation throughout its thickness. At the same time a strained layer appears in the substrate, whose thickness is proportional to the film thickness. The surface morphology changes of YBCO films which take place with variation of the growth temperaturet_sin the vicinity of the optimum temperature lead to changes of the film grain structure probably connected with nucleation centers. Tl₂Ba₂CaCu₂O_y(TBCCO) films on YSZ substrates were also synthesized. It was found that the dependence of the TBCCO film surface morphology changes with annealing temperature and the dependence of YBCO film surface morphology changes ont_sare similar.     

Reel-to-reel fabrication of meter-long YBCO coated conductor

YBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ (YBCO) superconductors were coated on the CeO₂/YSZ/Y₂O₃ buffered Ni-5at%W tapes by a reel-to-reel pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The process of a multi-layer deposition of YBCO film was explored. X-ray diffraction texture measurements showed good both in-plane and out of plane crystalline orientations in YBCO films. The average values calculated at a full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the peaks from phi-scans (φ) and omega (ω) scans for one meter-long YBCO tape were 7.49° and 4.71°, respectively. The critical current (I_c) was over 200 A/cm-width at 77 K and under self-field for meter-long YBCO tape. The critical transition temperature of the YBCO tape was typically as 90.1 K with 0.5 K transition widths.     

The growth and domain structure of YBa2Cu3Ox films on neodymium gallate substrates with a deviation of the normal to the surface from the [110] direction in NdGaO3

The growth, crystal structure, and electrophysical properties of YBa₂Cu₃O_x (YBCO) epitaxial films grown with and without a CeO₂ epitaxial sublayer on NdGaO₃ (NGO) substrates with the normal to the surface deviating from the [110] axis by 5° to 26.6° around the [001] axis are investigated. It is shown that the orientation of YBCO epitaxial films grown on such substrates is determined by the existence of symmetry-equivalent directions in the substrate and in the CeO₂ layer, as well as by the rate of film deposition. For a high deposition rate, YBCO films grow on the CeO₂ sublayer in the [001] orientation irrespective of the orientation of the substrate and the sublayer. It was found that when the angle of deviation of the substrate plane is from the (110) NGO plane, twinning of one or both twinning complexes in YBCO may be suppressed.     

Effect of La2Zr2O7-buffered YSZ substrate on YBa2Cu3Oy thin films by chemical solution deposition

Epitaxial YBa₂Cu₃O_y (YBCO) thin films have been fabricated by chemical solution deposition (CSD) on La₂Zr₂O₇-buffered YSZ single crystal substrate, where the buffer layer has three kinds of morphology – flat surface, rough surface and pore surface. The effect of LZO buffer layer’s roughness on the YBCO films was evaluated by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and temperature-dependent resistivity measurements. The flat surface of LZO layer is beneficial to highly epitaxial YBCO films and high critical current density.     

Effect of CeO2 buffer layer thickness on the structures and properties of YBCO coated conductors

Biaxially textured YBa₂Cu₃O_7−x (YBCO) films were grown on inclined-substrate-deposited (ISD) MgO-textured metal substrates by pulsed laser deposition. CeO₂ was deposited as a buffer layer prior to YBCO growth. CeO₂ layers of different thickness were prepared to evaluate the thickness dependence of the YBCO films. The biaxial alignment features of the films were examined by X-ray diffraction 2θ-scans, pole-figure, ?-scans and rocking curves of Ω angles. The significant influence of the CeO₂ thickness on the structure and properties of the YBCO films were demonstrated and the optimal thickness was found to be about 10 nm. High values of T_c = 91 K and J_c = 5.5 × 10⁵ A/cm² were obtained on YBCO films with optimal CeO₂ thickness at 77 K in zero field. The possible mechanisms responsible for the dependence of the structure and the properties of the YBCO films on the thickness of the CeO₂ buffer layers are discussed.     

Microstructure of YBCO thin films prepared by TFA-MOD method

The microstructure of the recently developed coated conductors was investigated by using electron back scatter diffraction pattern (EBSP). We prepared TFA (trifluoroacetates)-MOD (metal organic deposition) derived YBa₂Cu₃O_7−x (YBCO) films on CeO₂/LaMnO₃/IBAD-MgO/Gd₂Zr₂O₇/Hastelloy C276 substrates of 1 cm-width. The EBSP observation showed that there was a difference of surface microstructure between the midsection and the end of TFA-MOD YBCO film layer in the direction of width. This is attributed not to the local difference of the biaxial texture of CeO₂ top layer but to the local difference of growth condition during TFA-MOD process.     

c-Axis orientation control of YBa2Cu3O7−x films grown on inclined-substrate-deposited MgO-buffered metallic substrates

Biaxially textured YBa₂Cu₃O_7−x (YBCO) films were grown on non-textured metal substrates with inclined-substrate-deposited (ISD) MgO as template. The biaxial texture feature of the films was examined by X-ray pole-figure analysis, φ-scan, and 2θ-scan. A tilt angle of 32° of the MgO[001] with respect to the substrate normal was observed. Epitaxial growth of YBCO films with c-axis tilt angle of 32° with respect to the substrate normal was obtained on these substrates with SrTiO₃(STO) as buffer layer. Whereas, by choosing yttria-stabilized ZrO₂ and CeO₂ instead of STO as buffer layer, a c-axis untilted YBCO film was obtained. Higher values of T_c=91 K and J_c=5.5×10⁵ A/cm² were obtained on the c-axis untilted YBCO films with 0.46 μm thickness at 77 K in zero field. Comparative studies revealed a unique role of CeO₂ in controlling the orientation of the YBCO films grown on ISD-MgO buffered metal substrates.     

Meter-long CeO2/YSZ/Y2O3 buffer layers for YBCO coated conductors using DC reactive sputtering

This paper reports CeO₂/YSZ/Y₂O₃ buffer layers deposited on biaxially textured NiW substrates by DC reactive sputtering in a reel-to-reel system. The effect of partial pressure of water vapor (P_H2O) on surface morphology and orientation of the Y₂O₃ films was examined. The obtained CeO₂/YSZ/Y₂O₃ buffer layers exhibit a highly biaxial texture, with in- and out-of-plane FWHM values respectively in the range of 6.0–7.0° and 4.5–5.5°. Crystallographic consistency of CeO₂/YSZ/Y₂O₃ along meter length is excellent. Atomic force microscope observation (AFM) reveals a smooth, continuous and crack-free surface with a Root-mean-square roughness (RMS) lower than 10 nm.     

Epitaxial growth of Ce2Y2O7 buffer layers for YBa2Cu3O7−δ coated conductors using reel-to-reel DC reactive sputtering

Biaxially textured Ce₂Y₂O₇ (CYO) films were deposited on Ni–5at.%W (Ni–5W) tapes by a DC reactive sputtering technique in a reel-to-reel system. Subsequent YBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ (YBCO) films were prepared using pulsed laser deposition leading to a simplified coated conductor architecture of YBCO/CYO/Ni–5W. X-ray diffraction measurements revealed an epitaxial growth of the CYO buffer layer with a texture spread down to 2.2° and 4.7° for the out-of-plane and in-plane alignment, respectively. Microstructural investigations showed a dense, smooth and crack-free surface morphology for CYO film up to a thickness of 350 nm, implying an effective suppression of cracks due to the incorporation of Y in CeO₂. The superconducting transition temperature T_c of about 90 K with a narrow transition of 0.8 K and the inductively measured critical current density J_c of about 0.7 MA/cm² indicate the potential of the single CYO buffer layer.     

Effects of tin-compounds addition on Jc and microstructure for YBCO films

Tin-compounds were doped into YBa₂Cu₃O_7−δ (YBCO) films as pinning centers to enhance J_c in magnetic fields. YBCO films were grown by a metal organic deposition process using tri-fluoroacetates starting solutions. Tin-acetylacetonate salts were then dissolved into the starting solution as pinning centers. J_c of the YBCO films with tin-acetylacetonates were enhanced in all magnetic field angles. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and TEM-EDS (Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy) observations revealed the existence of tin-compound particles with the size of about 30 nm in the YBCO film. These nano particles were distributed randomly in the film and were considered to act as 3-dimentional pinning centers.     

YBCO films buffered by pyrochlore Nd2Mo2O7 layer on YSZ substrates by chemical solution deposition

A chemical solution deposition process was used to grow epitaxial Nd₂Mo₂O₇ (NMO) buffer layers on YSZ substrates to produce YBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ (YBCO) coated conductors. The NMO precursor solution prepared using metal acetylacetonates was spin-coated onto single crystal YSZ substrate of 10 mm × 10 mm in size at 3000 rpm for 30 s and heat-treated at 1000 °C for 2 h in Ar after calcinated at 550 °C for 1 h. The YBCO film was deposited by TFA-MOD route on top of the NMO/YSZ architecture. The phase purity and the crystalline orientation of NMO and YBCO films were evaluated by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used to observe their microstructure and their surface roughness. The critical current density (J_c) of YBCO film on NMO/YSZ is 1.8 MA/cm² at 77 K in self-field, which indicates that the Nd₂Mo₂O₇ is a potential buffer for YBCO coated conductor.     

Nanostructure of photocatalytic TiO2 films sputtered at temperatures below 200 °C

The article reports on correlations between the process parameters of reactive pulsed dc magnetron sputtering, physical properties and the photocatalytic activity (PCA) of TiO₂ films sputtered at substrate surface temperature T_surf ≤ 180 °C. Films were deposited using a dual magnetron system equipped with Ti (Ø50 mm) targets in Ar + O₂ atmosphere in oxide mode of sputtering. The TiO₂ films with highly photoactive anatase phase were prepared without a post-deposition thermal annealing. The decomposition rate of the acid orange 7 (AO7) solution during the photoactivation of the TiO₂ film with UV light was used for characterization of the film PCA. It was found that (i) the partial pressure of oxygen pO₂ and the total sputtering gas pressure p_T are the key deposition parameters influencing the TiO₂ film phase composition that directly affects its PCA, (ii) the structure of sputtered TiO₂ films varies along the growth direction from the film/substrate interface to the film surface, (iii) ∼500 nm thick anatase TiO₂ films with high PCA were prepared and (iv) the structure of sputtered TiO₂ films is not affected by the substrate surface temperature T_surf when T_surf < 180 °C. The interruption of the sputtering process and deposition in long (tens of minutes) pulses alternating with cooling pauses has no effect on the structure and the PCA of TiO₂ films and results in a decrease of maximum value of T_surf necessary for the creation of nanocrystalline nc-TiO₂ film. It was demonstrated that crystalline TiO₂ films with high PCA can be sputtered at T_surf ≤ 130 °C. Based on obtained results a phase zone model of TiO₂ films was developed.     

The influence of the rhenium in the precursor film on the properties of the thin superconducting films based on thallium

Thin films of thallium based superconductors have been prepared on a CeO₂ buffered R-plane sapphire as well as on a LaAlO₃ substrate using an RF magnetron sputtering and an ex situ thallination in a one zone configuration. We have studied the influence of the presence of the rhenium in the precursor film on structural and electrical properties of the final films. Our results show that the presence of the rhenium in the precursor films caused the significant changes in the morphology of the prepared films.     

蓝宝石基片上制备大面积Tl2Ba2CaCu2O8超导薄膜

在2英寸双面蓝宝石基片上采用CeO₂作为缓冲层制备了高质量Tl₂Ba₂CaCu₂O₈(Tl-2212)超导薄膜.以金属铈作为溅射靶材,采用射频磁控反应溅射法生长了c轴织构的CeO₂缓冲薄膜,并研究了不同生长条件对于CeO₂缓冲层的晶体结构及表面形貌的影响.超导薄膜采用直流磁控溅射和后热处理的方法制备.扫描电子显微镜(SEM)图像显示,超     

Deposition of Ag nanostructures on TiO2 thin films by RF magnetron sputtering

Ag nanostructures on TiO₂ films were deposited by RF magnetron sputtering under variable deposition parameters, such as DC potential, RF-power and total pressure. The concentration, shape, and distribution of the deposited nanostructures and continuous Ag films on thin films of TiO₂ can be tailored by careful variation of the deposition parameters. Controllable clusterlike, islandlike and film Ag structures on TiO₂ film were obtained, respectively. DC potential was found as an appropriate parameter to tailor the change of Ag nanostructure and the overall Ag amount. The compositions, nanostructures and morphologies of nanocomposite films appreciably influence the optical response.     

Pulsed magnetron sputtering and ion-induced annealing of carbon films

Thin carbon films are deposited on a silicon substrate at room temperatures via the biased pulsed magnetron sputtering of graphite in the physical (Ar, Kr, Xe) and reactive (Ar: CH4) modes at a different sputtering power density varying from 40 to 550 W/cm². To ensure ion-assistance, negative bias of the substrate is set during film deposition by means of both DC and pulsed power sources. Some deposition parameters lead to a high hardness of the films (12.5 GPa), optical transparency, a surface resistance of RS > 10⁹ Ω/h, and developed nanomorphology of the sample surface which bears visible inclusions with a lateral size of 35 nm. Some of the films are annealed after deposition with a C⁺-ion beam with an energy of 20 keV. A correlation between the parameters of magnetron deposition and ion-beam modification and the examined characteristics of the films is found. Different R _S values in a wide range can be achieved by means of simple adjustment of the parameters and modes during magnetron sputtering and ion-beam modification.