M. Ochsenkuhnpetropulu et al., PREPARATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF ELECTROPHORETICALLY DEPOSITED HIGH-TEMPERATURE SUPERCONDUCTOR COATINGS, Mikrochimica acta, 113(1-2), 1994, pp. 19-27
The high-temperature superconductor, YBa2Cu3O7-x (x = 0.1-0.2) [YBCO],
was prepared using an optimized calcination and sintering process. Th
in layers of a few microns of this material were deposited on a silver
substrate by applying a simplified electrophoretic deposition techniq
ue in a suspension of the fine, < 10 mum, superconductor powder in a n
on-aqueous liquid. To get a uniform and strongly adherent coating, the
deposition process is repeated several times, followed by an appropri
ate sintering procedure. The initially prepared YBCO powder and the co
atings produced were characterized for their superconducting propertie
s by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), magnetization measurements with
a Superconducting Quantum Interference Device (SQUID) and electrical
resistivity measurements. By scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and el
ectron probe microanalysis (EPMA) the grain size of the YBCO film, its
thickness and impurity content, respectively, were estimated.