Investigation of vortex pinning and its relaxation is of great importance for both basic physics and technological applications in the field of superconductivity. We report a great improvement of superconducting properties in the recently discovered 112-type superconductors (Ca, La)FeAs2 through Co co-doping. High critical current density Js(5 K) > 2*106 A/cm2 is obtained and pronounced second peak effect is observed in magnetization hysteresis loops. Both the dynamic and static relaxation studies result in comparable and sizable relaxation rates S or Q, indicating a fast vortex creep. The second magnetization peak (SMP) is found to be strongly associated with a crossover from elastic to plastic vortex creep. Above the crossover, plastic vortex creep governs the vortex dynamics in a wide range of temperatures and fields. A good scaling behavior of the normalized pinning force density fp by formula fp = hp(1−h)q (p = 1.44, q = 1.66, h = 0.44) is revealed, which demonstrates an important contribution from core normal point-like pinning sites. To better understand the SMP phenomenon, we discuss the related physical scenario as well as the affecting factors in the SMP occurrence.

Iron chalcogenide Fe(Te,Se) attracted much attention due to its simple structure, which is favorable for probing the superconducting mechanism. Its less toxic nature compared with iron arsenides is also advantageous for applications of iron-based superconductors. By intercalating spacer layers, superconducting transition temperature has been raised over 40 K. On the other hand, the presence of excess Fe is almost unavoidable in Fe(Te,Se) single crystals, which hinders the appearance of bulk superconductivity and causes strong controversies over its fundamental properties. Here we report a Systematical study of O2-annealing dynamics in Fe1+yTe1−xSex by controlling the amount of O2, annealing temperature, and time. Bulk superconductivity can be gradually induced by increasing the amount of O2 and annealing time at suitable temperatures. The optimally annealed crystals can be easily obtained by annealing with ~1.5% molar ratio of oxygen at 400°C for more than 1 hour. Superconductivity was witnessed to evolve mainly from the edge of the crystal to the central part. After the optimal annealing, the complete removal of excess Fe was demonstrated via STM measurements. Some fundamental properties were recharacterized and compared with those of as-grown crystals to discuss the influence of excess Fe.

We fabricated (Ba,K)Fe 2 As 2 superconducting wires and tapes using the powder-in-tube method and hot isostatic pressing (HIP). HIP wires and tapes showed a high value of transport critical current density (J c ) exceeding 100 kAcm −2 at T=4.2 K and the self-field. Transport J c in the HIP wire reached 38 kAcm −2 in a high magnetic field of 100 kOe. This value is almost twice larger than the previous highest value of J c among round wires using iron-based superconductors. Enhancement of J c in the wires and tapes was caused by improvement of the drawing process, which caused degradation of the core, formation of microcracks, weak links between grains, and random orientation of grains. Details of the effect of the improved fabrication processes on the J c are discussed. Keywords: superconducting wires and tapes, (Ba,K)Fe 2 As 2 , critical current density, powder-intube (PIT), hot isostatic pressing (HIP)

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Anisotropic superconducting properties including the upper critical field Hc2, thermal activation energy U0, and critical current density Jc are systematically studied in a large Ca1−xLaxFeAs2 single crystal (x ∼ 0.18). The obtained Hc2 bears a moderate anisotropy γ of approximately 2–4.2, located between those of “122” Ba1−xKxFe2As2 (1 < γ < 2) and “1111” NdFeAsO1−xFx (5 < γ < 9.2). Both the magnitude of U0 and its field dependence are very similar to those of NdFeAsO1−xFx, also indicating anisotropic superconductivity. Moreover, high and anisotropic Jc’s exceeding 105 A/cm2 have been calculated from the magnetization hysteresis loops, indicating the existence of strong bulk-dominated pinning in the present superconducting material.

We have systematically investigated and compared different methods to induce superconductivity in the iron chalcogenide Fe 1+y Te 0.6 Se 0.4 , including annealing in a vacuum, N 2 , O 2 and I 2 atmospheres and immersing samples into acid and alcoholic beverages. Vacuum and N 2 annealing are proved to be ineffective in inducing superconductivity in a Fe 1+y Te 0.6 Se 0.4 single crystal. Annealing in O 2 and I 2 and immersion in acid and alcoholic beverages can induce superconductivity by oxidizing the excess Fe in the sample. Superconductivity in O 2 annealed samples is of a bulk nature, while I 2 , acid and alcoholic beverages can only induce superconductivity near the surface. By comparing the different effects of O 2 , I 2 , acid and alcoholic beverages we propose a scenario to explain how the superconductivity is induced in the non-superconducting as-grown Fe 1+y Te 0.6 Se 0.4 .

We reported a controllable way of removing excess Fe in Fe 1+y Te 0.6 Se 0.4 by annealing in a fixed amount of O 2 . Compared with the weak superconductivity induced by dilute acids, O 2 annealing can successfully induce bulk superconductivity. Proper O 2 annealing changes the temperature dependence of resistivity at low temperatures from semiconducting to metallic, which comes from the deintercalation of excess Fe. Critical current densities with field along the c-axis and ab-plane are found almost isotropic with large values of // Hc c

Among iron-based superconductors, Fe 1+y