Growth of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x single-crystalline films by liquid phase epitaxy

We present a novel technique of liquid phase epitaxy (LPE) of the Bi2Sr2CaC u2O8+x superconductor. The LPE films grow on MgO substrates from a moving s olvent, which is locally heated by an infrared image furnace. The surfaces of the grown films showed a multi-grain structure constituted of grains of a few hundred microns in diameter. In the X-ray rocking curve, the full wid th at half maximum was smaller than 0.1 degrees, comparable with the misali gnment angles of subgrains in the MgO substrates. After annealing under an optimal doping condition, the onset in the AC susceptibility and the transi tion into a zeroresistance state were observed at 86 K. (C) 2001 Elsevier S cience B.V. All rights reserved.