• Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.28-31
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• 2012

We report the solid-liquid phase equilibria on the $GdBa_2Cu_3O_{7-{\delta}}$ (GdBCO) stability phase diagram in low oxygen pressures ($PO_2$) ranging from 1 to 100 mTorr. On the basis of the GdBCO stability phase diagram experimentally determined in low oxygen pressures, the isothermal sections of three different phase fields on log $PO_2$ vs. 1/T diagram were schematically constructed within the $Gd_2O_3-Ba_2CuO_y-Cu_2O$ ternary system, and the solid-liquid phase equilibria in each phase field were described. The invariant points on the phase boundaries include the following three reactions; a pseudobinary peritectic reaction of $GdBCO{\leftrightarrow}Gd_2O_3$ + liquid ($L_1$), a ternary peritectic reaction of $GdBCO{\leftrightarrow}Gd_2O_3+GdBa_6Cu_3O_y$ + liquid ($L_2$), and a monotectic reaction of $L_1{\leftrightarrow}GdBa_6Cu_3O_y+L_2$. A conspicuous feature of the solid-liquid phase equilibria in low $PO_2$ regime (1 - 100 mTorr) is that the GdBCO phase is decomposed into $Gd_2O_3+L_1$ or $Gd_2O_3+GdBa_6Cu_3O_y+L_2$ rather than $Gd_2BaCuO_5+L$ well-known in high $PO_2$ like air.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.22 no.11
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• pp.569-574
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• 2012

Large single grain $Gd_{1.5}Ba_2Cu_3O_{7-y}$ (Gd1.5) bulk superconductors were fabricated by a top-seeded melt growth (TSMG) process using an $NdBa_2Cu_3O_{7-y}$ seed. The seeded Gd1.5 powder compacts with a diameter of 50 mm were subjected to the heating cycles of a TSMG process. After the TSMG process, the diameter of the single grain Gd1.5 compact was reduced to 43 mm owing to the volume contraction during the heat treatment. The superconducting transition temperature ($T_c$) of the top surface of the single grain Gd1.5 sample was as high as 93.5 K. The critical current densities ($J_cs$) at 77 K and 1T and 1.5 T were in ranges of 25,200-43,900 $A/cm^2$ and 10,000-23,000 $A/cm^2$, respectively. The maximum attractive force at 77 K of the sample field-cooled using an Nd-B-Fe permanent magnet (surface magnetic field of 0. 527 T) was 108.3 N; the maximum repulsive force of the zero field-cooled sample was 262 N. The magnetic flux density of the sample field-cooled at 77 K was 0.311T, which is approximately 85% of the applied magnetic field of 0.375 T. Microstructure investigation showed that many $Gd_2BaCuO_5$ (Gd211) particles of a few ${\mu}m$ in size, which are flux pinning sites of Gd123, were trapped within the $GdBa_2Cu_3O_{7-y}$ (Gd123) grain; unreacted $Ba_3Cu_5O_8$ liquid and Gd211 particles were present near the edge regions of the single grain Gd1.5 bulk compact.