Microstructure and Superconducting Properties of Single Grains of Y-Ba-Cu-O Containing Y-2411(M) and ${\rm Y}_{2}{\rm O}_{3}$

Y-Ba-Cu-O (YBCO) single grains have the potential to generate large trapped magnetic fields for engineering applications, and research on the processing and properties of this material has attracted interest world-wide over the past 20 years. In particular, the introduction of flux pinning centers to the large grain microstructure to improve its current density
Jc
, and hence trapped field, has been investigated extensively. Y
₂
Ba
₄
CuMO
_x
[Y-2411(M)], where M=Nb , Ta, Mo, W, Ru, Zr, Bi and Ag, has been discovered recently to form very effective flux pinning centers due primarily to its ability to form nano-size inclusions in the superconducting phase matrix. However, the addition of the Y-2411(M) phase to the precursor composition complicates the melt-processing of single grains. The addition of Y
₂
O
₃
to the precursor composition, however, broadens the growth window of single YBCO grains containing Y-2411 (M). We report an investigation of the microstructures and superconducting properties of single grains of this composition grown by top seeded melt growth (TSMG).