MgB2 thick films with remarkable ductility on stainless steel substrate

Abstract

We fabricated several superconducting MgB₂ thick films on stainless steel (SS) substrates by using hybrid physical-chemical vapor deposition (HPCVD) technique. The thickness was in the 10 m μ to 20 m μ range, and the onset critical transition temperature T_c (onset) and the width of the superconducting transition (?T) were about 37.8 and 1.2 K. They were dense and textured along (101) direction with high tenacity, despite the existence of a little amount of MgO and Mg. We bent the films at different degrees and studied the ductility and transport properties of these MgB₂ thick films under applied force. The results demonstrated that the superconducting properties of these thick films, prepared by HPCVD, stay almost unaffected even with the films bent to a large degree with a curvature of 0.5 mm. This indicated that the superconducting wires or tapes of MgB₂ with a core of SS had the advantages of avoiding rigidity and brittleness in industrial handling. The technique of HPCVD has, therefore, a high application potential.

Keywords

superconducting films, hybrid physical chemical vapor deposition (HPCVD), MgB₂ thick film, stainless steel substrate, ductility