Growth of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ thin films with enhanced superconducting properties by incorporating CaIrO3 nanoparticles

We synthesized Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta (Bi-2212) thin films with incorporated CaIrO3 (Ca-iridate) nanoparticles, by using pulsed laser deposition and post-growth ex situ annealing. We found that the density of incorporated Ca-iridate strongly affected the superconducting properties and microstructure of the Bi-2212 thin films. Incorporating a low density of Ca-iridate (450 laser pulses) in the Bi-2212 improved its superconducting properties (Tc-onset = 97 K, Tc-zero = 84 K) over those of pure Bi-2212 (Tc-onset = 94 K, Tc-zero = 80 K). However, incorporating a higher density (1800 pulses) significantly reduced Tc-zero to approximate to 57 K. Incorporating a low density of Ca-iridate also decreased the c-axis lattice constant. Films with incorporated Ca-iridate exhibited greater critical current density, J(c)(B), than the pure Bi-2212 film. These results indicate that incorporating low densities of Ca-iridate nanoparticles into Bi-2212 can improve its superconducting properties. (C) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.