Structured YBa2Cu3O7-delta thin films grown on aligned calcium stabilized zirconia-calcium zirconate lamellar eutectic substrates

In this paper we present a new approach to obtain structured biepitaxial fi lms by using eutectic substrates. In particular we have deposited YBa2Cu3O7 -delta (YBCO) thin films grown by Metal-Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition ( MOCVD) on eutectic Ca-stabilized Zirconia - CaZrO3, (CSZ-CZO) substrates st ructured in the form of parallel lamellae. The films reproduce the pattern of the substrate rind show ordered arrays of alternating c-axis and (103)-o riented YBCO strips. Crystallographic characterisation reveals that YBCO fi lms grow epitaxially on both eutectic phases. The structured films were ana lysed by EPMA, and micro-Raman. The films show anisotropic transport proper ties in both normal (resistivity anisotropy rho(T)/rho(L) (300K) approximat e to 1.9) and superconducting states (critical current anisotropy at 77K J( c)(L)/J(c)(T) approximate to 13) when measured along (L) or transverse (T) to the substrate lamellae. Transport along transverse direction showed a co nsiderably higher sensitivity to applied magnetic field than measurements i n the longitudinal direction. This was attributed to the weak-link behaviou r of the artificially-induced grain boundaries between strips.