STRUCTURAL, TRANSPORT, AND MAGNETIC-PROPERTIES OF PRBA2-XSRXCU3O7-DELTA

Structural, electrical transport, and magnetic properties of polycryst alline samples of PrBa2-xSrxCu3O7-delta were investigated. The solid s olubility limit for Sr in PTBa2-xSrxCu3O7-delta was found to be about 0.8 and the orthorhombic-to-tetragonal phase transition occurred at x= 0.2. With Sr doping, the electrical resistivity reduced abruptly, espe cially at low temperatures. For the x=0 sample, rho(20 K)/rho(300 K)si milar to 10(4), for the x=0.8 sample, rho(20 K)/rho(300 K)similar to 1 00, while for x=1, rho(20 K)/rho(300 K)similar to 3. In contrast to th e aforementioned change, the antiferromagnetic ordering temperature T- N and the effective magnetic moment of Pr ions showed no obvious chang e indicating their insensitivity to Sr doping. The results are discuss ed considering the Sr doping induced variation of hybridization betwee n Pr ions and O-2p of the CuO2 planes.