The Effect of Composition and Oxygen Pressure on the Superconducting Properties of NdBa2Cu3O7-x Thin Films, Deposited by Rotatable Magnetron Sputtering.

Rotatable magnetron sputtering is still a promising technique for scaling up of large area deposition of high temperature superconducting thin films. Furthermore, it represents a standard equipment for very large area web coating and glass coating in industrial environment. We have already demonstrated that with rotatable magnetron sputtering epitaxial c-axis oriented NdBa2Cu3O7-x (NBCO) thin films could be obtained on MgO and YSZ single crystals and buffered tapes. The superconducting properties, like Tc and Jc, of these films are still reduced due to low pressure sputtering. The c-axis lattice parameter is expanded or the sputtered NBCO thin film exists of 2 phases, one with the correct c-axis parameter and the other phase shows an elongated c-axis parameter, which influences the superconducting properties. In this work we will investigate the properties of thin films, sputtered with a nonstoichiometric target at low pressure (classical sputter regime). Especially, the influence of the oxygen partial pressure is very important and will be studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]