• Progress in Superconductivity
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.143-151
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• 2007

Accurate measurements of the microwave surface resistance (Rs) of high temperature superconductor (HTS) films are important with regard to applications of HTS materials for wireless communications. As the surface resistance values of HTS films are usually extracted from the measured unloaded quality factor ($Q_0$) of resonators made of HTS films, it is essential to measure the resonator $Q_0$ with accuracy. The $TE_{011}\;mode\;Q_0$ of sapphire resonators with the endplates made of $YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-{\delta}}$(YBCO) film on $LaAlO_3$ is measured by using the S-parameter circle-fit method at a frequency of about 19.6 GHz and temperatures of 30 K to 90 K, which is compared with the measured values by using the Lorentzian-fit method. Good agreements are found between the two sets of $Q_0$ values measured by using the two different methods whether the resonator is used in a weak-coupling scheme or a strong-coupling scheme, showing reliability of both methods fur measuring the resonator $Q_0$ accurately. The $Q_0$ of sapphire resonators with a gap between the top plate and the rest of the resonator is also discussed.

• Progress in Superconductivity
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.146-151
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• 2008

Measurements of surface resistance ($R_s$) of high temperature superconductor (HTS) films with accuracy are essential for microwave applications of HTS materials. In using the dielectric resonator method, uncertainties in the unloaded quality factor of the resonator cause significant errors in the measured $R_s$ of HTS films. We compare the Rs values of $YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-{\delta}}$ films calculated from the $Q_0$ as determined from the Lorentzian fit with that from the $Q_0$ as determined from the S-parameter circle-fit at temperatures between 15 K and 77 K. The two sets of values appeared to differ by 5%, 7%, 6%, and 11% at temperatures of 15, 60, 70, and 77 K, respectively, from each other, implying that careful error analysis needs to be performed in obtaining the $R_s$ of HTS films by using the Lorentzian-fit method, with the ones determined from the S-parameter circle-fit used as the reference.

• Progress in Superconductivity
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.97-104
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• 2011

In the dielectric resonator method, which has been widely used for measuring the microwave surface resistance of superconductors, accuracies in the geometrical factors (G-factors) affect the uncertainty in the measured surface resistance. We compare the G-factors of short-ended sapphire resonator as obtained by using field analysis with those by using computer simulations: The former is obtained by using the analytic expressions for the electric and the magnetic field components inside the resonator, and the latter by using computer software. The G-factors as obtained by using the latter appear to be closer to those obtained by using the former as the resonator space is divided into larger number of sub-space, i.e., a tighter mesh, with a difference of ~8 % observed for a mesh of 14400 sub-spaces reduced to ~2 % for 114996 sub-spaces. Variations in the relative uncertainty in the surface resistance of typical $YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-\delta}$ superconductor films with those in the G-factors are studied, which provides an upper limit of the relative uncertainty in the G-factors required for realizing the target uncertainty in the surface resistance. These results could be useful in estimating the optimum number of meshes for obtaining the G-factors through computer simulations.