Electric transport properties of YBa2Cu3O7-δ thin-film bridges with laser-written channels of easy vortex motion.

Electric properties of YBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ (YBCO) superconducting thin-film bridges with artificial 5-μm-wide channels for easy motion of Abrikosov vortices have been investigated. Vortex channels have been laser written into the bridge constrictions by means of heat-induced, partial depletion of oxygen from the laser-illuminated areas. Insertion of the channel into a bridge structure increases its resistivity in the normal state, broadens the superconducting transition, and dramatically reduces the critical current density. Experimentally observed features have been ascribed to the vortex channeling mechanism, which reduces the pinning efficiency of the extended growth defects in YBCO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]