Effect of High Doses Gamma Irradiation on Texturing of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8 (Bi-2212) Superconductor

Abstract

The effect of high doses gamma irradiation on the texture and microstructure of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8 (Bi-2212) superconductor is studied in order to observe the sustainability of the material in radiation environment such as gamma radiation. The prepared samples have been irradiated with 100 kGray (kGy) of gamma irradiation and investigated by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microsopy (SEM). The Texture Coefficient (TC) for both the non-irradiated and irradiated samples has been calculated. The XRD patterns of the samples showed the Bi-2212 phase as the dominant phase. However, reduction in the intensity of Bi-2212 phase is observed in the gamma irradiated sample. Furthermore the calculated TC percentage of the irradiated sample have lower values when compared to the non-irradiated sample. The SEM micrograph of the irradiated sample showed random grains orientation with poorly connected inter and intra-grain microstructure that are in agreement with the calculated TC percentage.