Results are reported from an investigation of the effects of selected processing parameters on the morphology and properties of YBa2Cu3O7−δ (YBCO) superconducting thin films grown directly on polycrystalline silver substrates by chemical-vapor deposition (CVD). These results were achieved through a set of experimental studies which examined: (i) recrystallization mechanisms of polycrystalline silver and their effect on the deposition of YBCO thin films; and (ii) CVD processing conditions leading to the growth of high-quality YBCO films. The samples were analyzed using dynamic impedance, four-point resistivity probe, x-ray diffraction, Rutherford backscattering, and scanning electron microscopy. These studies showed that substrate temperature played a critical role not only in the formation of YBCO films, but also in the recrystallization of silver substrates, which in turn greatly influenced film growth. The studies also led to the identification of a two-stage processing scheme for the growth of YBCO films on silver. The first processing stage consisted of a substrate conditioning cycle which involved a 10 min ramping from room temperature to deposition temperature where the substrates were held for an additional 10 min in a flow of 70 sccm O2 at a reactor working pressure of 2 Torr. The second processing stage involved actual film deposition at 760–800 °C for 3–10 min (depending on desired film thickness) in a mixed flow of 70 sccm O2 and 210 sccm N2O at a reactor working pressure of 4 Torr. Samples thus produced were highly oriented along the c axis perpendicular to the substrate with a zero resistance transition temperature of 87 K and a critical current density of 2×104 A/cm2 (77 K, B=0). The films had a thickness of 200–700 nm depending on the length of the growth cycle, which corresponded to the growth rates in the range 65–130 nm/min. A growth mechanism for YBCO on polycrystalline silver, which emphasized the role of silver recrystallization, was consequently proposed and discussed.
Y1Ba2Cu3O7−x superconducting thin films were grown in situ on polycrystalline MgO substrates by a chemical vapor deposition process that closely couples the sublimation temperatures of the elemental sources to that of the substrate during deposition. It was found that the best quality films were achieved with a controlled ramping of the substrate temperature from 850 °C, at the onset of deposition, down to 750 °C at the end of deposition. The films were analyzed by Rutherford backscattering (RBS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray diffractometry (XRD), and four-point resistivity probe. The results of these studies showed that the films were highly c-axis oriented, had near-stoichiometric composition, and exhibited Tc,onset=90 K, Tco=85 K, and had a Jc=2×105 A/cm2 at 77 K in zero magnetic field. A model is proposed for the effect of such temperature control on the CVD growth mechanism of high-quality YBCO films.
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