Eddy Current Measurements of the New High TC Ceramic Superconductors

Abstract

The discovery of ceramic superconductor materials which have transition temperatures above that of liquid nitrogen has inspired very active research in this area.These materials have great potential; however, there are many technique problems with fabricating them in useful forms.A major problem is that most fabrication schemes produce consolidated forms with relatively low critical currents.Successful fabrication of these materials requires a means of measuring the critical parameters in ways that can be used for process monitoring and control.In particular, the superconducting critical parameters (critical temperature TC; current, JC; and magnetic field, HC) need to be measured in a nondestructive manner, preferably with a noncontacting, imaging technique.Accomplishing this goal is a new challenge to the NDE community.This paper is a beginning to the process of developing appropriate NDE diagnostic tools for these superconductors.