Critical currents in silver-sheathed (Bi,Pb)2Sr2Ca2Cu3O10−y superconducting tapes

Abstract

Nearly 95 vol % of the 110 K superconducting phase was formed by lead doping in a Bi–Sr–Ca–Cu–O system. The processed 110 K superconducting powders were used to produce long silver-sheathed tapes with a highly textured microstructure by rolling and prolonged sintering. The transport critical current density was measured at 4.0 K to be 0.7×105 A/cm2 (the corresponding critical current is 74 A) at zero field and 1.6×104 A/cm2 at 12 T for H∥ab. At 76 K, the critical current density reached a value of ∼1×104 A/cm2 at zero field for H∥ab and gradually decreased to 419 A/cm2 at 1 T. Excellent grain alignment in the a–b plane led to greatly improved critical current densities under a magnetic field. The relationship between the transport properties and the microstructure of the tapes is discussed.