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Register a new userIn situ epitaxial MgB2 thin films for superconducting electronics
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A thin film technology compatible with multilayer device fabrication is critical for exploring the potential of the 39-K superconductor magnesium diboride for superconducting electronics. Using a Hybrid Physical-Chemical Vapor Deposition (HPCVD) process, it is shown that the high Mg vapor pressure necessary to keep the MgB$_2$ phase thermodynamically stable can be achieved for the {it in situ} growth of MgB$_2$ thin films. The films grow epitaxially on (0001) sapphire and (0001) 4H-SiC substrates and show a bulk-like $T_c$ of 39 K, a $J_c$(4.2K) of $1.2 times 10^7$ A/cm$^2$ in zero field, and a $H_{c2}(0)$ of 29.2 T in parallel magnetic field. The surface is smooth with a root-mean-square roughness of 2.5 nm for MgB$_2$ films on SiC. This deposition method opens tremendous opportunities for superconducting electronics using MgB$_2$.
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In situ growth of pyrochlore iridate thin films has been a long-standing challenge due to the low reactivity of Ir at low temperatures and the vaporization of volatile gas species such as IrO3(g) and IrO2(g) at high temperatures and high oxygen partial pressures. To address this challenge, we combine thermodynamic analysis of the Pr-Ir-O2 system with experimental results from the conventional physical vapor deposition (PVD) technique of co-sputtering. Our results indicate that only high growth temperatures yield films with crystallinity sufficient for utilizing and tailoring the desired topological electronic properties. Thermodynamic calculations indicate that high deposition temperatures and high partial pressures of gas species O2(g) and IrO3(g), are required to stabilize Pr2Ir2O7. We further find that the gas species partial pressure requirements are beyond that achievable by any conventional PVD technique. We experimentally show that conventional PVD growth parameters produce exclusively Pr3IrO7, which conclusion we reproduce with theoretical calculations. Our findings provide solid evidence that in situ synthesis of Pr2Ir2O7 thin films is fettered by the inability to grow with oxygen partial pressure on the order of 10 Torr, a limitation inherent to the PVD process. Thus, we suggest high-pressure techniques, in particular chemical vapor deposition (CVD), as a route to synthesis of Pr2Ir2O7, as this can support thin film deposition under the high pressure needed for in situ stabilization of Pr2Ir2O7.
We have studied the structural and superconducting properties of MgB$_2$ thin films made by pulsed laser deposition followed by in situ annealing. The cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy reveals a nanocrystalline mixture of textured MgO and MgB$_2$ with very small grain sizes. A zero-resistance transition temperature ($T_{c0}$) of 34 K and a zero-field critical current density ($J_c$) of $1.3 times 10^6$ A/cm$^2$ were obtained. The irreversibility field was $sim$ 8 T at low temperatures, although severe pinning instability was observed. These bulk-like superconducting properties show that the in situ deposition process can be a viable candidate for MgB$_2$ Josephson junction technologies.
Precursor MgB2 thin films were prepared on sapphire substrates by magnetron sputtering. Influence of ex-situ annealing process on superconducting MgB2 thin films roughness is discussed. Optimized annealing process of MgB precursor thin films in vacuum results in smooth superconducting MgB2 thin films with roughness below 10 nm, critical temperature Tcon = 31 K and transition width DTc less than 1 K. Nano-bridges based on the superconducting MgB2 thin films using optical and Focused Ion Beam lithography were prepared. Critical current density jc (4.2 K) measured on 50 nm wide strip was 7.3x106 A/cm2 and no significant loss of superconducting properties was detected. Resistance vs. temperature and critical current vs. temperature characteristics were measured on these structures using standard DC four probe measurements.
We report on nanoscale strain gradients in ferroelectric HoMnO3 epitaxial thin films, resulting in a giant flexoelectric effect. Using grazing-incidence in-plane X-ray diffraction, we measured strain gradients in the films, which were 6 or 7 orders of magnitude larger than typical values reported for bulk oxides. The combination of transmission electron microscopy, electrical measurements, and electrostatic calculations showed that flexoelectricity provides a means of tuning the physical properties of ferroelectric epitaxial thin films, such as domain configurations and hysteresis curves.
High-quality epitaxial MgB2 thin films prepared by pulsed laser deposition with Tc = 39 K offer the opportunity to study the anisotropy and robustness of the superconducting state in magnetic fields. We measure the in-plane electrical resistivity of the films in magnetic fields to 60T and estimate the superconducting upper critical field Hc(0) = 24 +- 3 T for field oriented along the c-axis, and Hab(0) = 30 +- 2 T for field in the plane of the film. We find the zero-temperature coherence lengths xi_c(0) = 30 A and xi_ab(0) = 37 A to be shorter than the calculated electronic mean free path l = 100 +- 50 A, which places our films in the clean limit. The observation of such large upper critical fields from clean limit samples, coupled with the relatively small anisotropy, provides strong evidence of the viability of MgB2 as a technologically important superconductor.
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