Observation of magnetization reversal in epitaxial Gd0.67Ca0.33MnO3 thin films

High quality epitaxial thin films of Gd0.67Ca0.33MnO3 have been deposited onto (100) SrTiO3 substrates by pulsed-laser deposition. Enhanced properties in comparison with bulk samples were observed. The magnetic transition temperature (Tc) of the as-grown films is much higher than the corresponding bulk values. Most interestingly, magnetization measurements performed under small applied fields, exhibit magnetization reversals below Tc, no matter whether the film is field-cooled (FC) or zero-field-cooled (ZFC). A rapid magnetization reversal occurs at 7 K when field cooled, while as for the ZFC process the magnetization decreases gradually with increasing temperatures, taking negative values above 7 K and changing to positive values again, above 83 K. In higher magnetic fields the magnetization does not change sign. The reversal mechanism is discussed in terms of a negative exchange f-d interaction and magnetic anisotropy, this later enhanced by strain effects induced by the lattice mismatch between the film and the substrate.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figure

Enhanced critical current density of MgB2 superconductor synthesized in high magnetic fields

The effect of high magnetic fields on the current carrying properties of both MgB2 bulks and Fe-sheathed tapes was investigated following different thermal sequences. It is found that application of a large magnetic field during processing results in the quite uniform microstructure and the better connectivity between the MgB2 grains. As a result, the Jc of these samples has shown much higher value than that of the MgB2 samples in the absence of magnetic field. The possible mechanism of the Jc enhancement under an external magnetic field is also discussed.Comment: Presented at ISS2005, Tsukuba, 24-26 Oct., 2005; Revised versio

Significantly enhanced critical current densities in MgB2 tapes made by a scaleable, nano-carbon addition route

Nanocarbon-doped Fe-sheathed MgB2 tapes with different doping levels were prepared by the in situ powder-in-tube method. Compared to the undoped tapes, Jc for all the C-doped samples was enhanced by more than an order of magnitude in magnetic fields above 9 T. At 4.2 K, the transport Jc for the 5 at% doped tapes reached 1.85x104 A/cm2 at 10 T and 2.8x103 A/cm2 at 14 T, respectively. Moreover, the critical temperature for the doped tapes decreased slightly. Transmission electron microscopy showed a number of intra-granular dislocations and the dispersed nanoparticles embedded within MgB2 grains induced by the C doping. The mechanism for the enhancement of flux pinning is also discussed. These results indicate that powder-in-tube-processed MgB2 tape is very promising for high-field applications.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figures. to be published soo

Development of Powder-in-Tube Processed Iron Pnictide Wires and Tapes

The development of the PIT fabrication process of iron pnictide superconducting wires and tapes has been carried out in order to enhance their transport properties. Silver was found to be the best sheath material, since no reaction layer was observed between the silver sheath and the superconducting core. The grain connectivity of iron pnictide wires and tapes has been markedly improved by employing Ag or Pb as dopants. At present, critical current densities in excess of 3750 A/cm^2 (Ic = 37.5 A) at 4.2 K have been achieved on Ag-sheathed SrKFeAs wires prepared with the above techniques, which is the highest in iron-based wires and tapes so far. Moreover, Ag-sheathed Sm-1111 superconducting tapes were successfully prepared by PIT method at temperatures as low as 900C, instead of commonly used temperatures of 1200C. These results demonstrate the feasibility of producing superconducting pnictide composite wires, even grain boundary properties require much more attention.Comment: 4 pages, 6 figures. Submitted to ASC2010 proceeding