Toward $\hbox{YBa}_{2}\hbox{Cu}_{3}\hbox{O}_{7-\delta}$ Nanoscale Structures for Hybrid Devices

An ex situ ozone annealing has been applied both on YBa
₂
Cu
₃
O
_7-δ
(YBCO) films and nanowires. From the investigation on bare films, by measuring the superconducting resistive transition in temperature and the X-ray diffraction pattern, we have observed that the ozonation can be a powerful tool to oxygenate the YBCO structure. To probe the effective role of this reactive annealing on nanostructures, we have fabricated nanowires with widths down to 100 nm, covered by a 20-nm-thick Au layer. We have compared the critical current density and the broadening of the resistance transition measured before and after the ozone treatment, concluding that the ozone is instrumental in recovering very high quality superconducting properties inside the nanostructures, which were degraded by the oxygen out-diffusion occurring during the nanopatterning.