Irradiation with electrons is an efficient approach to inducing a large number of defects with a minimal impact on the material itself. Analysis of the energy transfer from an accelerated particle smashing into the crystal lattice shows that only electrons with MeV energies produce point defects in the form of interstitial ions and vacancies that form perfect scattering centers. Here, we investigate the changes in the resistive characteristics of YBCO single crystals from the 1-2-3 system after several steps of low-temperature irradiation with $0.5-2.5$\,MeV electrons and irradiation doses of up to $8.8\times10^{18}$\,cm$^{-2}$. The penetration depth of such electrons is much larger than the crystal thickness. We reveal that defects appearing in consequence of such electron irradiation not only increase the residual resistance, but they affect the phonon spectrum of the system and lower the superconducting transition temperature linearly with increase of the irradiation dose. Furthermore, the irradiation-induced defects are distributed non-uniformly, that manifests itself via a broadening of the superconducting transition. Interestingly, the excess conductivity remains almost unaffected after such electron irradiation.
The influence of irradiation by electrons with energies of $0.5-2.5$\,MeV at temperatures of about $10$\,K on the basal-plane resistivity of the YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{7-δ}$ single crystals is investigated in the range from $T_c$ to $300$\,K. The resistivity temperature dependence is determined by defects arising due to the irradiation. These defects directly affect the superconducting transition, decreasing $T_c$ and increasing the transition width without significant distortions of its shape. The resulting defects also lead to an increase in the Debye temperature due to a reduction of the anisotro…
By scanning with a $30\, \mathrm{keV}$ focused He ion beam (He-FIB) across YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_7$ (YBCO) thin film microbridges, we create Josephson barriers with critical current density $j_\mathrm{c}$ adjustable by irradiation dose $D$. The dependence $j_\mathrm{c} (D)$ yields an exponential decay. At $4.2\, \mathrm{K}$, a transition from flux-flow to Josephson behavior occurs when $j_\mathrm{c}$ decreases below $\approx 2\, \mathrm{MA/cm^2}$. The Josephson junctions exhibit current-voltage characteristics (IVCs) that are well described by the resistively and capacitively shunted junction model,…
The angular dependence of magnetic-field commensurability effects in thin films of the cuprate high-critical-temperature superconductor YBa$_{2}$Cu$_{3}$O$_{7-δ}$ (YBCO) with an artificial pinning landscape is investigated. Columns of point defects are fabricated by two different methods of ion irradiation -- scanning the focused 30 keV ion beam in a helium ion microscope or employing the wide-field 75 keV He$^+$ beam of an ion implanter through a stencil mask. Simulations of the ion-target interactions and the resulting collision cascades reveal that with both methods square arrays of defect …
Intermodulation distortion (IMD) of microwave signals incident upon a superconducting YBa2Cu3O7 thin film sample on a LaAlO3 substrate is shown to relax as the sample magnetization also relaxes, revealing the signature of fluxon decay in the microwave distortion. The sample contained a microchannel of columnar defects that was introduced using heavy ion beam irradiation. After exposure to and then removal of a low strength static magnetic field, IMD relaxed due to thermal activation of fluxons over the surface barrier. This process influenced second and third order IMD differently, visible in …
The defect-rich morphology of YBa$_{2}$Cu$_{3}$O$_{7-δ}$ (YBCO) thin films leads to a glass-like arrangement of Abrikosov vortices which causes the resistance to disappear in vanishing current densities. This vortex glass consists of entangled vortex lines and is identified by a characteristic scaling of the voltage-current isotherms. Randomly distributed columnar defects stratify the vortex lines and lead to a Bose glass. Here, we report on the observation of an ordered Bose glass in a YBCO thin film with a hexagonal array of columnar defects with 30 nm spacings. The periodic pinning landscap…
Josephson transport in YBa${}_{2}$Cu${}_{3}$O${}_{7}$ weak links created by focused-helium-ion-beam irradiation: Analysis based on diffusive-SNS-junction model
National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology（日本产业技术综合研究所）
Effect of mixed pinning landscapes produced by 6 MeV Oxygen irradiation on the resulting critical current densities J$_c$ in 1.3 $μ$m thick GdBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{7-d}$ coated conductors grown by co-evaporation
本文报道了用共蒸发法制备的1.3 μ m厚的GdBa $_2$ Cu $_3$ O $_{7-d}$涂层导体中，6 MeV $^{16}$ O $^{3+}$辐照引入的晶体缺陷对临界电流密度J $_c$和磁通蠕变率的影响。主要由直径接近50 nm的随机纳米颗粒产生的具有钉扎的原始膜以2 × 10 - 3 $^{13}$ cm $^{-2}$和4 × 10 - 3 $^{14}$ cm $^{-2}$之间的剂量照射。在低于40 K的温度下，平行（H//c）和与c轴成45°（H//45°）施加磁场，辐照可以显著改善磁场中的J $_c$依赖性。对于1x 10 $^{14}$ cm $^{-2}$的剂量，$μ$ $_0$ H = 5 T时的J $_c$值加倍，而不会显著影响小视野下的J $_c$。分析的磁通蠕变率作为温度的函数在两个磁场配置，可以观察到，照射抑制与双扭结松弛的峰值，并增加在中高温下的磁通蠕变率。在0.5T下，H//c和H//45°的磁通弛豫分别呈现出特征玻璃化指数$μ$ = 1.63和$μ$ = 1.45。对于用1x 10 $^{14}$ cm $^{-2}$辐照的样品，这些值分别降至$μ$ = 1.45和$μ$ =1.24。
In-plane anisotropy of electrical resistivity was studied in samples of the hole-doped Ba$_{1-x}$K$_x$Fe$_2$As$_2$ in the composition range $0.21 \leq x \leq 0.26$ where anisotropy changes sign. Low-temperature ($\sim$20~K) irradiation with relativistic 2.5 MeV electrons was used to control the level of disorder and residual resistivity of the samples. Modification of the stress-detwinning technique enabled measurements of the same samples before and after irradiation, leading to conclusion of anisotropic character of predominantly inelastic scattering processes. Our main finding is that the r…
We report the influence of 6 MeV Zr$^{4+}$ irradiation and post-irradiation annealing (200 °C) in the in-field dependences of the critical current densities J$_c$ of 1.3 $μ$m thick GdBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{7-d}$ coated conductors grown by co-evaporation. Samples were irradiated with 6 MeV Zr$^{4+}$ and fluences between 2.3x10$^{11}$ cm$^{-2}$ and 3x10$^{12}$ cm$^{-2}$. The correlation between the superconducting critical temperature T$_c$ and in-field dependences of critical current densities J$_c$ has been analyzed. In addition, random disorder introduced by irradiation was reduced by thermal anneal…
Tailoring the properties of YBa$_{2}$Cu$_{3}$O$_{7-δ}$ thin films by 30-keV He$^+$ irradiation: An enabling route to superconducting device nanopatterning
University of Vienna（维也纳大学）；Universität Tübingen, Physikalisches Institut, Center for Quantum Science (CQ) and LISA +（蒂宾根大学物理学院，量子科学中心（CQ）和LISA+）
The change in vortex ensemble in BaFe$_{2}$(As$_{0.67}$P$_{0.33}$)$_2$, an isovalently doped iron-based superconductor (IBS), is studied through global magnetization measurements and single vortex imaging before and after 6 MeV proton irradiation. The field dependence of the critical current density ($J_\mathrm{c}$) is analyzed through the strong pinning model, with which the pristine sample is consistent. After the irradiation, the $J_\mathrm{c}$ aberrates from the strong pinning field dependence of $B^{-5/8}$, and evolves to a weaker $B^{-1/3}$ dependence with an anomalous two-step behavior …
Static (DC) and dynamic (AC, at 14 MHz and 8 GHz) magnetic susceptibilities of single crystals of a ferromagnetic superconductor, $\textrm{EuFe}_{2}(\textrm{As}_{1-x}\textrm{P}_{x})_{2}$ (x = 0.23), were measured in pristine state and after different doses of 2.5 MeV electron or 3.5 MeV proton irradiation. The superconducting transition temperature, $T_{c}(H)$, shows an extraordinarily large decrease. It starts at $T_{c}(H=0)\approx24\:\textrm{K}$ in the pristine sample for both AC and DC measurements, but moves to almost half of that value after moderate irradiation dose. Our results suggest …
Machine-Learned Interatomic Potentials for Structural and Defect Properties of YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{7-δ}$
Politecnico di Torino（都灵理工大学）；Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Torino（意大利国家核物理研究所都灵分部）；Lancaster University（兰卡斯特大学）；University of Helsinki（赫尔辛基大学）；Eni S.p.A.（埃尼集团）；United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority（英国原子能管理局）
Several diamond bulk crystals with a concentration of electrically neutral single substitutional nitrogen atoms of $\lesssim 80~$ppm, the so-called C- or P1-centres, were irradiated with electrons at 10 MeV energy and low fluence. The results show a complete suppression of the irreversible behavior in field and temperature of the magnetization below $\sim 30$~K, after a decrease of $\lesssim 40~$ppm in the concentration of C-centres produced by the electron irradiation. This result indicates that magnetic C-centres are at the origin of the large hysteretic behavior found recently in nitrogen-d…
