Production of Complex Ceramic Films using domestic Inkjet Printers

The production cost is one of the issues for some complex ceramics applications, like the superconducting oxides. The main properties of such materials, i.e., zero electrical resistivity and perfect diamagnetism, make them attractive for several applications, including energy storage. Thus, in this work, we focus on the production and structural characterization of BSCCO superconducting films using a domestic inkjet printer. The precursor solution was prepared following Pechini's method, and it was used, such as the ink. Then, an E-shape film was printed over a SiO2 substrate. The results show that the sample produced with 12 depositions presented a superconducting transition at 81 K and a critical current density of 9.68 A/cm2 at 78 K

Interação da matéria de vórtices com estruturas de defeitos : detecção das primeiras penetrações

This thesis results from a systematic study of the interactions between penetrated vortices and pinning centers carried out on structured superconductors films of YBCO, Nb and Pb. A regular array of pinning centers (antidots, ADs) was inserted in those samples by mechanical indentations (in YBCO and Nb films), and by a lithographic processes (Pb). The structure of the YBCO film counts with 1680 ADs, each with an effective diameter of 2 μm, distributed in a square array of 50 μm size. The Nb film has 900 ADs, with an effective diameter of 1 μm, forming a square array of 10 μm size. The Pb film has more than 3.7 millions of square ADs, with 0.8 μm of lateral dimensions, and the formed array has size of 1.5 μm. Those systems were studied by DC and AC magnetometry. As the Commensurability Field (Matching Field, MF) associated with their structures, is very small, it was not possible to study the commensurability effects in YBCO and Nb films. However, the Pb film has a structure which MF is 9.1 Oe, so that, jumps in its magnetic response could be observed each time that the applied field reached an integer multiple of that field. The YBCO film was studied in very small DC fields, i.e., only in the presence of the Earth magnetic field. We verified that, as the vortices penetrate the sample, they arrange themselves into the ADs in such a way that the sample behave as a collection of small superconductors arranged side by side. This study was not carried out on the other samples because the preparation of this experiment is very difficult and needs special experimental conditions which are rarely available in our laboratory. Particularly, for the Pb film, we could not have enough time to prepare the experiment due to its rapid degradation. We have studied the temperature dependence of the remnant magnetization (thermoremanence) of the Pb film for several cooling fields. That study revealed that the remnant response of the system increases with the cooling field, however, a saturation value is reached for fields greater than the first MF of its array. This behavior is due to the proximity of the ADs which hinders the pinning of vortices in interstitial regions. The remanence rises sharply up to the first MF, when the remnant flux counts one quantum per AD. For greater fields, the remnant rising rate has a sudden change and approaches to zero. In measurements of χAC as a function of the excitation field amplitude, all of the studied samples revealed that, in the beginning of the penetration, the vortices are impeded to move by the first front of ADs. Upon reaching a certain number, vortices eventually cross this first barrier and move deeper into the sample, up to the second front. In other words, at low temperatures and vortex densities (or, equivalently, at low AC fields), the penetration takes place layer by layer, i.e., the AD fronts act as contention barriers for the entrance of vortices, and they have to be suppressed one by one. We have studied the temperature dependence of the remnant magnetization (thermoremanence) of the Pb film for several cooling fields. That study revealed that the remnant response of the system increases with the cooling field, however, a saturation value is reached for fields greater than the first MF of its array. This behavior is due to the proximity of the ADs which hinders the pinning of vortices in interstitial regions. The remanence rises sharply up to the first MF, when the remnant flux counts one quantum per AD. For greater fields, the remnant rising rate has a sudden change and approaches to zero. In measurements of χAC as a function of the excitation field amplitude, all of the studied samples revealed that, in the beginning of the penetration, the vortices are impeded to move by the first front of ADs. Upon reaching a certain number, vortices eventually cross this first barrier and move deeper into the sample, up to the second front. In other words, at low temperatures and vortex densities (or, equivalently, at low AC fields), the penetration takes place layer by layer, i.e., the AD fronts act as contention barriers for the entrance of vortices, and they have to be suppressed one by one.Universidade Federal de Minas GeraisEsta tese é o resultado de um estudo sistemático da interação entre vórtices penetrados e centros de aprisionamento presentes em sistemas supercondutores estruturados. Para isso utilizamos três filmes supercondutores, um de YBCO, um de Nb e um de Pb, onde redes quadradas de perfurações (que denominaremos por ADs, antidots, em inglês) foram inseridas. Nos dois primeiros, foram feitas indentações mecânicas, enquanto que para o Pb foram utilizados processos litográficos. No filme de YBCO a célula unitária da rede apresenta 50 μm de lado e os ADs têm um diâmetro efetivo de 2 μm, contando com um total de 1680 ADs. O filme de Nb apresenta 900 ADs de 1 μm de diâmetro efetivo, arranjados em uma rede de 10 μm de lado. Já o filme de Pb conta com mais de 3.7 milhões de ADs de formato quadrado, com 0.8 μm de lado e, a rede formada, tem célula unitária de 1.5 μm. Estudamos esses sistemas por técnicas de magnetometria DC e AC. Por possuírem um baixo valor do Campo de Comensurabilidade (Matching Field, MF) associado às suas redes, não foi possível estudar os efeitos de coincidência para os filmes de YBCO e Nb. Contudo, o filme de Pb possui uma estrutura cujo MF é de 9.1 Oe e, dessa forma, foi possível observar saltos na sua resposta magnética cada vez que o campo aplicado atingia um múltiplo inteiro de tal campo. O filme de YBCO foi estudado na presença de baixíssimos campos DC, isto é, apenas na presença do campo da Terra. Verificamos que, ao penetrarem no material, os vórtices se arranjam pelos ADs de forma que o filme passa a se comportar como uma coleção de supercondutores menores dispostos lado a lado. Esse estudo não foi realizado nas outras amostras por ser extremamente trabalhoso, além de necessitar de condições experimentais raramente disponíveis em nosso laboratório. Particularmente para o filme de Pb, não tivemos tempo hábil para a preparação de tal experimento, devido à sua rápida degração. O filme de Pb foi estudado quanto à sua termorremanência para diversos campos de resfriamento da amostra. Tal estudo revelou que a reposta remanente desse sistema é crescente com o campo porém, apresenta um valor de saturação para campos acima do MF da sua rede. Isto é devido à proximidade entre seus ADs, que dificulta o aprisionamento de vórtices na região intersticial. A remanência cresce de forma pronunciada até o campo aplicado alcançar o primeiro MF, quando o fluxo remanente no material conta com um quantum por AD. Para campos maiores, a taxa de crescimento da remanência tem uma mudança súbita e aproxima-se de zero. Em medidas de χAC em função da amplitude do campo de excitação, todas as amostras revelaram que, no início da penetração, os vórtices são barrados pela primeira fronte de ADs. Somente após alcançarem determinada quantidade é que conseguem vencer essa primeira barreira e se aprofundam no material, indo de encontro à segunda fronte. Em outras palavras, em temperaturas e densidades de vórtices suficientemente baixas (ou, equivalentemente, baixos campos AC), a penetração se dá camada por camada , i.e., as frontes de ADs agem como barreiras de contenção à entrada de vórtices, sendo superadas uma a uma

Data set for 'Synthesis of Y2BaCuO5 nano-whiskers by a solution blow spinning technique and their successful introduction into single-grain, YBCO bulk superconductors'

Data supporting the publication 'Synthesis of Y2BaCuO5 nano-whiskers by a solution blow spinning technique and their successful introduction into single-grain, YBCO bulk superconductors'. The data enclosed contains sets of raw data connected with measurements of trapped field in two samples (with and without Y-211 whiskers). Also enclosed is the temperature dependence of magnetisation and field dependence of critical current density in YBCO samples with and without Y-211 nano-whiskers