Deposition of high-temperature superconducting films on biaxially textured Ni(001) substrates

CeO2//YSZ//YBCO layers have been successfully grown on rolling-assisted biaxially textured Ni(001) substrates using pulsed laser deposition. The results indicate that CeO2 and YSZ can effectively improve film texture. The full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) of the rocking curves for Ni(002), CeO2(002), YSZ(002) and YBCO(005) are 10.8 degrees, 6.8 degrees, 4.7 degrees, 1.2 degrees, respectively. The FWHM of phi-scans for CeO2(202) and YBCO(226) are respectively 9 degrees and 6.5 degrees. Scanning electron microscopy observations reveal that the layer-like morphology was evident from all layers, and Ag can effectively fill in the microcracks and prevent interdiffusion. The critical current density of the best films is 1-2 X 10(6) A/cm(2). (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.