Journal of Materials Research
November 2005— Volume 20, Number 11

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Assessment of chemical solution synthesis and properties of Gd2Zr2O7 thin films as buffer layers for second-generation high-temperature superconductor wires T. Aytug, M. Paranthaman, K.J. Leonard, H.Y. Zhai, M.S. Bhuiyan, E.A. Payzant, A. Goyal, S. Sathyamurthy, D.B. Beach, P.M. Martin, and D.K. Christen Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831 X. Li, T. Kodenkandath, U. Schoop, and M.W. Rupich American Superconductor Corp., Westborough, Massachusetts 01581 H.E. Smith, T. Haugan, and P.N. Barnes Air Force Research Laboratory, Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio 45433

Chemical solution processing of Gd₂Zr₂O₇ (GZO) thin films via sol-gel and metalorganic decomposition (MOD) precursor routes have been studied on textured Ni-based tape substrates. Even though films processed by both techniques showed similar property characteristics, the MOD-derived samples developed a high degree of texture alignment at significantly lower temperatures. Both precursor chemistries resulted in exceptionally dense, pore-free, and smooth microstructures, reflected in the cross-sectional and plan-view high-resolution scanning and transmission electron microscopy studies. On the MOD GZO buffered Ni-3at.% W (Ni-W) substrates with additional CeO₂/YSZ sputtered over layers, a 0.8-μm-thick YBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ (YBCO) film, grown by an ex situ metalorganic trifluoroacetate precursor method, yielded critical current, I_c (77 K, self-field), of 100 A/cm width. Furthermore, using pulsed-laser deposited YBCO films, a zero-field superconducting critical current density, J_c (77 K), of 1 × 10⁶ A/cm² was demonstrated on an all-solution, simplified CeO₂(MOD)/GZO(MOD)/Ni-W architecture. The present study establishes GZO buffers as a candidate material for low-cost, all-solution coated conductor fabrication.

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