Comparison of the Efficiency of the One and Two-Step Process for the Production of BSCCO (2212) Powders by Means of Analytical Techniques

 The efficiency of the production of the high temperature superconducting powders Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O_8+x (BSCCO 2212) using the solid state reaction in one or two step processes under different thermal treatment was compared by means of different modern analytical techniques. Through the same techniques the optimization of the production of the production of Bi-2212 powder produced by the two step process, was achieved. X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy were used to characterize the products for their stoichiometry and phase-purity. The grain size of the powders was observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), while their superconducting properties were tested by electrical DC-resistivity and magnetic susceptibility measurements using a superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID). It resulted that the two step process gives a high quality BSCCO 2212 superconducting powder with T _c = 85 K, in a shorter time and with a greater recovery rate than the one step process. Received May 3, 1999. Revision April 27, 2000.