Ig. Gorlova et Vn. Timofeev, CRYSTAL-STRUCTURE AND EXCESS CONDUCTIVITY OF BSCCO(2212) WHISKERS, Physica. C, Superconductivity, 255(1-2), 1995, pp. 131-135
The results of a combined study of the structural and conductive prope
rties of BSCCO (2212) whiskers are reported. After electrical measurem
ents the samples are examined by transmission electron microscopy, wit
hout preliminary thinning. The whiskers with transverse dimensions as
small as 1 x 0.1 mu m(2) are single crystals of high quality. Some of
the samples are free of dislocations. It is found that the quasi-one-d
imensional behavior of the paraconductivity is independent of the pres
ence of dislocations. However, the excess conductivity is suppressed i
n the twinned whiskers. The existence of a superstructure along the b-
direction in a BSCCO crystal could be a possible reason for the a-b-pl
ane paraconductivity anisotropy, resulting in the one-dimensional cond
ucting fluctuations.