Structural, superconducting and mechanical properties of molybdenum substituted Bi1.8Sr2Ca1.1Cu2.1Oy

The effect of MoO3 addition on the properties of Bi-2212 superconducting ceramic samples prepared by solid state reaction method has been investigated. Mo content was varied from 0 to 0.25 on a general stoichiometric formula Bi1.8Sr2MoxCa1.1Cu 2.1Oy. Electrical resistivity showed that transition temperature width increased directly with the Mo amount. XRD data have shown that MoO3 addition in the Bi1.8Sr2Mo xCa1.1Cu2.1Oy precursor reduces the amount of Bi-2212 phase. In addition, Jc values of the samples, calculated from the hysteresis loops using the Bean's model, decreased with increasing Mo substitution. Vickers microhardness measurements show that samples are very sensitive to Mo content and applied load. In addition, various models like Meyer's Law and Young's Modulus equations have been used to better explain the mechanical properties of samples. © 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.A. Sotelo, M. A. Madre, and J. C. Diez acknowledge financial support from the Spanish MICINN-FEDER (Project MAT2008-00429), the Universidad de Zaragoza (UZ2011-TEC-03) and the Gobierno de Aragón (Consolidated Research Groups T12 and T87). M. A. Madre also acknowledges MINECO-FEDER (Project MAT2011-22719) financement.Peer Reviewe