MECHANICAL STABILIZATION OF BSCCO-2223 SUPERCONDUCTING TAPES

A system to provide mechanical stabilization to high temperature BSCCO -2223 superconducting tape by laminating 0.081 mm thick, spring hard, copper foil to both sides with lead-tin eutectic solder has been succe ssfully optimized. This system has been applied as a method to create a strong, windable composite with a minimum of critical current (I-c) degradation, The ''as received'' conductor is evaluated for physical c onsistency of width and thickness, Electrical degradation in the stren gthened tape as a result of lamination was found to average 24 percent , This was less than the degradation that would have occurred in an un strengthened tape during subsequent insulation and coil winding proces ses, The copper can double the ultimate tensile strength of the pure s ilver tapes. Additionally, pure silver and dispersion strengthened sil ver matrix tapes are laminated with 0.025 mm thick copper and 304 stai nless steel foil to investigate minimization of the cross sectional ar ea of the strengthening component. The stainless steel can increase th e UTS of the pure silver tapes sixfold. Mechanical properties and crit ical currents of these tapes are also reported both before and after s trengthening, The I-c is also measured as a function of strain on the laminated tapes.