Ceramic Superconductors Produced By Advanced Ceramics Processing (Materials Research)

本项目将研究利用胶体技术生产陶瓷超导体的先进陶瓷加工方法。在这个项目中使用的加工方法将允许微观结构被精确控制；从而揭示了新型材料的微观结构、性能和加工之间的关系。铜超导体的极端各向异性要求在多晶聚集体中发展织构微结构。因此，本项目将研究低温胶体加工技术，以获得陶瓷绿体形成时晶粒的优先结晶取向。这可以通过在液氮中分散超导体粒子并在磁场存在下进行过滤来完成。研究人员将评估受控微观结构样品的电特性，包括在应变下的转变温度和临界电流密度。研究人员将建造设备来测量临界电流密度作为磁场应变的函数。

This project will investigate advanced ceramic processing methods through use of colloidal techniques to produce ceramic superconductors. The processing methods used in this project will allow the microstructures to be precisely controlled; thereby, revealing the relationship between microstructure, properties, and processing for the new class of materials. The extreme anisotropy of the cuprate superconductors necessitates the development of texture microstructures in polycrystalline aggregates. Therefore, the project will investigate cryogenic colloidal processing techniques to obtain preferential crystallographic orientation of grains as the ceramic greenbody is formed. This might be accomplished in the project by dispersing particles of the superconductor in liquid nitrogen and filtercasting in the presence of a magnetic field. The investigators will evaluate electrical characteristics of controlled microstructure samples with respect to transition temperature, and critical current densities while under strain. The investigators will construct equipment to measure the critical current density as a function of strain in a magnetic field.