Temperature dependence of the infrared optical properties of YBa2Cu3O7: A plasmon damping model

The temperature dependence observed in the mid- and near-infrared optical properties of YBa₂Cu₃O₇ is explained in terms of the Drude model for free charge carriers. In the Drude model, the linear temperature dependence of the dc resistivity arises from the free charge carriers having a temperature-dependent mean free path. This temperature dependence results in the plasmon contribution to the dielectric constant having a damping coefficient which also varies linearly with temperature. We find that the temperature dependence which is observed in the absorption and reflection spectra of YBa₂Cu₃O₇ is consistent with this simple model.     

Superconducting properties of YBa2Cu3O7-Au composites

By X-ray diffraction and photoelectron spectroscopy, we have demonstrated that Au is incorporated in the YBCO lattice up to a concentration 0.1. An XPS study gave evidence for an electronic valence state Au¹⁺. Its replacement in the Cu(1) site appears questionable due to the large difference in ionic radii (Cu²⁺0.073 nm; Au¹⁺0.137 nm). The so called irreversibility lines determined by AC susceptibility measurements are strongly affected by the doping. Up to the limit of solubility in the grains, an improvement in intra and intergrain coupling and flux pinning energy is observed, showing the beneficial interest of YBCO-Au composites.     

Temperature dependence of the elastic and inelastic moduli of YBa2Cu3O7−δ ceramics

Elastic and inelastic moduli of the superconducting yttrium-barium oxide ceramics YBa₂Cu₃O_7−δ (YBCO) were studied using the ultrasonic resonance technique. In the range from room temperature up to the temperature of the ortho-tetra phase transition, the elastic and inelastic moduli of YBCO samples exhibit a number of anomalies. It is shown that these features are related to the behavior of active oxygen in the ceramics, the phase inhomogeneity of the material, and the phase transitions.     

Characterization of YBa2Cu3O7/PrBa2Cu3O7 superlattices

We investigated the structural and superconducting properties ofc-axis oriented (YBa₂Cu₃O₇) _nY /(PrBa₂Cu₃O₇) _npr superlattices with thicknesses of the individual layers down to one unit cell (10≥nY≥1; 18>nPr≥ 1). By transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction we find an excellent structural quality of the samples, though the quantitative analysis shows the existence of defects. In superlattices with decoupled YBa₂Cu₃O₇ layers of two unit cell thickness we find a highT _c value of 75 K. We probed the flux line structure in the superlattices by measurements of the critical current density in magnetic fields. The experiments show that the flux-line dynamics is dominated by the movement of pancake vortices.     

Density dependence of the ultrasonic properties of high-T c sintered YBa2Cu3O7−x superconductors

Journal of Materials Science Letters -     

Specific heat of YBa2Cu3O7

Specific heat measurements, including measurements in magnetic fields and at both low temperatures and nearT _c , on a number of YBa₂Cu₃O₇ samples have revealed several correlations among strongly sample-dependent parameters. These correlations suggest that the sample dependence of the parameters reflects a sample dependence of the volume fraction of superconductivity, which is in turn correlated with a low concentration of Cu²⁺ moments. The correlations give a criterion for recognizing the values of the parameters characteristic of the fully superconducting material. Preliminary results on the effects of sample heat treatment are reported. New data on the “linear term” is presented and discussed.     

新型自润滑YBa_2Cu_3O_7/Cu复合材料的制备及性能

采用草酸盐共沉淀法制备了YBa2Cu3O7(YBCO)粉体,利用真空热压烧结法制备了不同质量分数的YBCO/Cu复合材料,测定了YBCO/Cu复合材料的密度、硬度和电导率,利用MMU-5GA磨损试验机对YBCO/Cu复合材料进行了摩擦磨损试验。采用XRD、SEM和TEM对YBCO粉体及YBCO/Cu复合材料的微观结构、磨损表面形貌及物相组成进行了表征。研究了YBCO质量分数对YBCO/Cu复合材料组织及性能的影响。结果表明:所制备的YBCO粉体物相为Y123相,其层状结构明显,粉体纯度高、杂质少,粒度达到纳米级;纳米YBCO可显著细化YBCO/Cu复合材料的基体组织,提高复合材料的摩擦学性能。随着YBCO质量分数增加,基体组织中纳米YBCO颗粒分布均匀度降低,逐渐出现团聚;YBCO/Cu复合材料的电导率和密度降低,硬度先升高后降低,摩擦系数逐渐减小。3%YBCO/Cu复合材料的摩擦磨损性能最好。YBCO/Cu复合材料强化机制为Orowan强化、热错配强化和细晶强化;其磨损机制主要为塑变磨损、磨粒磨损和疲劳剥落。     

Low-temperature specific heat of YBa2Cu3O7, YBa2Cu3O6, Y2BaCuO5, YBa3Cu2O7, BaCuO2, and CuO

We have measured the low-temperature specific heat (1.3T20 K) and the dc magnetic susceptibility (100T250 K) of eight samples of the high-T _c superconductor Y _x Ba_3–x Cu₃O_7– (x=0.9, 1.0, 1.1) and of two samples of nonsuperconducting YBa₂Cu₃O₆₊. We have also performed specific heat measurements on the possible impurity phases: YBa₃Cu₂O₇, Y₂BaCuO₅, CuO, and BaCuO_2+x . The superconducting samples all have a nonzero, sample-dependent linear term * and an upturn inC/T at very low temperature. We show that this anomalous behavior is at least partly due to the presence of a small amount (1%) of BaCuO_2+x impurity phase in the measured samples. This is evidenced by the correlation between * and the Curie component of the susceptibility, which is proportional to the amount of paramagnetic impurities.     

Glassy behavior of low-temperature energy relaxation in YBa2Cu3O7 and YBa2Cu3O6

Measuring the power release after rapid cooling a YBa₂Cu₃O₇ sample (m=42.85 g, T_c=91 K) from the equilibrium temperature T₁ (2.35 KT₁15.1 K) to T₀=1.5 K, we observed a time dependence typical of a glass: is proportional to t^–1. The results allow us to determine the linear term of the heat capacity (0.8 mJ/mole · K²) due to the two-level systems. While the low-temperature heat capacity anomaly noticeably decreases, the power release is essentially unchanged after oxygen reduction of the sample.     

Raman scattering studies of ultrathin-layer YBa2Cu3O7/PrBa2Cu3O7 superlattices

We present Raman scattering studies ofc-oriented ultrathin-layer superconducting (YBa₂Cu₃O₇) _m /(PrBa₂Cu₃O₇) _n superlattices. For the superlattice with (m=2,n=1) sequence, Raman spectra reveal a new line in the spectral region around 320 cm^?1. It is interpreted as a mode representing a combination of IR optical phonons of the Y-sublayers with an admixture of aB _1g type Raman active vibration in the Pr sublayers. This new line, which is similar to those from the interior of the Brillouin zone of the original lattice, does not exhibit superconductivity-induced self-energy effects, although its counterpart in the pure substance does. No additional line is found in the (m=1,n=2) superlattice in the same region, supporting our interpretation for the (m=2,n=1) sample.     

Electronic structure of YBa2Cu3O7 and YBa2Cu3O6—charge-self-consistent band structure calculations

Charge self-consistent LCAO band structure (CSCBS) calculations are reported for orthorhombic YBa₂Cu₃O₇ and tetragonal YBa₂Cu₃O₆ assuming ordered vacancy models. The effective atomic charges are used to study the charge transfer. In YBa₂Cu(1)₁Cu(2)₂O₇, the two types of copper atoms have their energy bands almost overlapping with effective valency of each copper as 7/3 (or effective valency of each oxygen as approximately — 13/7), so that electron hopping can take place without any loss or gain of energy while in YBa₂Cu(1)₁Cu(2)₂O₆, Cu(1)₁ is monovalent and Cu(2)₂ are divalent with significant difference in their bands. Therefore, YBa₂Cu₃O₇ should conduct much better compared to YBa₂Cu₃O₆. This corroborates the experimental observations that YBa₂Cu₃O₇ is a (super)conductor while YBa₂Cu₃O₆ is not. The calculated effective charges and DOS support the above view.     

A study of textured YBa2Cu3O7-x superconductor

The effect of the starting powders, prepared by different heat treatment processes on the grain-oriented YBCO bulk materials, were studied by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and a quantum design SQUID magnetometer. Results suggest that the specimens, which were calcined at 750° C for 10 h, heated at 950° C for 24 h, and then sintered at 930° C for 20 h, were preferentiallyc-axis oriented. The grain-orientation was found to be due to the partial melting of the YBCO compound.     

Reaction kinetics in the superconducting YBa2Cu3O7-x and SmBa2Cu3O7x

The compounds under investigation were prepared with nominal composition MBa₂ Cu₃ O_7-x, M being Y or Sm, through solid state reaction starting from Y₂O₃, Sm₂O₃, BaCO₃ and CuO powders. Reactions were investigated by thermo-gravimetric and differential thermal analysis in the temperature range 900–980°C. Reaction kinetics of MBa₂Cu₃O_7-x solid state synthesis were evaluated according to the mathematical relationships theoretically derived for phenomenological models. In the Y-based system the phase boundary model provides a reaction kinetics suitable to describe the process, while a three dimensional diffusion model fits the data in the Sm-based system. The influence of the mixing method on the reaction kinetics was evaluated. Microstructural features of superconducting samples were analyzed.     

Physical and mechanical properties of YBa2Cu3O7-δ superconductors

The physical and mechanical properties of YBa₂Cu₃O_7–° superconductors are examined. These properties are related to powder preparation method, powder characteristics, sintering behaviour and sintered microstructure. The sintering atmosphere and sintering schedules affect the final microstructure very strongly and determine, in conjunction with starting powder characteristics, the sintered density. The mechanical properties such as Young's modulus, bend strength and critical stress intensity factor (fracture toughness) are measured and related to microstructure as determined by electron microscopy. Control of microstructure by careful powder selection and sintering schedule is seen as key to optimizing the physical and mechanical properties of the material. Finally attention is drawn to fabrication techniques and how these must be optimized in order to realize the mechanical properties which are necessary if these are to be useful as engineering materials. Comparisons between fabrication techniques show that uniaxial powder pressing suffers from limitations in terms of specimen complexity and densification whereas the favoured route, termed viscous processing, gives a more homogeneous microstructure, higher strength and allows near theoretical density to be achieved.     

Field modulated microwave absorption in YBa2Cu3O7/PrBa2Cu3O7 multilayers

We describe field modulated microwave absorption measurements on YBa₂Cu₃0₇ / PrBa₂Cu₃O₇ multilayers with PrBa₂Cu₃O₇ thickness in the range 2.5 to 10 nm and with a fixed YBa₂Cu₃O₇ thickness of 10 nm. The Fourier spectrum of the reflected microwave power reveals one fundamental frequency which appears at T_c and even harmonics of the modulation field frequency at lower temperatures. The determination of the irreversibility line near T_c for different values of the PrBa₂Cu₃O₇ thickness and inferred from the vanishing of the nonlinear response signal at 2 in the presence of superimposed dc and modulation fields is reportedit.     

Pressure study of structural properties and phonons in YBa2Cu3 O7

The pressure dependence of crystal structure and vibrational properties of YBa ₂ Cu ₃ O ₇ is investigated by first-principles calculations based on density functional theory. We have determined the optimized geometry for different unit cell volumes by relaxing the atoms to their force-free positions. The tendency of altered bond strength with pressure is consistent with experimental investigations and previous c-axis strain calculations. The pressure effect on the three A _1g phonon frequencies dominated by oxygen vibrations is in very good agreement with experimental investigations showing constant linear pressure coefficients d/dp over a wide range of pressure values.     

Transport properties of oxygen-deficient YBa2Cu3O7−x thin films

We report on measurements of the in-plane resistivityρ and Hall coefficientR _H (B∥c) of various oxygen-deficient epitaxial films of YBa₂Cu₃O_7?x in the normal state. The superconducting transition temperaturesT _c of the samples vary from 14 to 90 K. Both the resistivity and the Hall coefficient exhibit a strong dependence on the oxygen content and the temperature. Asx increases,T _c decreases continuously, whileρ andR _H gradually increase in magnitude. Furthermore, also the characteristic linear dependences ofραT andR _Hα T ^?1 of the highly doped compounds changes to a nonlinear behavior for the samples withT _c lower than 60 K. The unusual doping and temperature dependence ofR _H will be compared to the predictions of our calculations, based on a two-dimensional tight-binding model using the relaxation-time approximation. The model considers also the next-nearest-neighbor hopping, which strongly influences the predicted Hall coefficient. Additionally, the cotangent of the Hall angle cot(Θ _H ) is discussed in the framework of the two-dimensional Luttinger liquid theory.     

YBa2 Cu3 O7-x单晶的制备

介绍了制备高温超导体YBa2Cu3O7-x单晶的主要方法,分析了在制备过程中存在的问题,指出液相的性质是影响生长速率的重要因素.在此基础上,着重探讨了通过控制氧压和元素替代等方法来改变液相的性质,从而达到提高YBCO单晶生长速率的目的.