Influence of RE-Based Liquid Source (RE = Sm, Gd, Dy, Y, Yb) on EuBCO/Ag Superconducting Bulks

One of the common approaches to improve the microstructure of rare-earth-barium-copper-oxide-based superconducting ceramics is an addition of a liquid source under the precursor bulk during top-seeded melt growth or top-seeded infiltration growth. The additional liquid source partially negates the change in elemental composition due to the loss of the liquid phase, which otherwise occurs. The focus of this contribution is to study the effects of various RE
₂
O
₃
-Ba
₃
Cu
₅
O
₈
-BaO
₂
(RE = Sm, Gd, Dy, Y, Yb) liquid sources on the properties and microstructure of single-domain EuBCO/Ag bulks. The samples were prepared with a height of 16 mm and a diameter of 28 mm (as grown). This allowed us to study the diffusion of rare earth elements from the liquid source into the final bulk in detail. Samples were characterized by XRD, SEM, and EDS. The phase composition was studied in detail using Rietveld refinement. The influence on key superconducting properties was also examined. The addition rare earth liquid phase has significantly improved the trapped field homogeneity. Dy
₂
O
₃
has yielded the highest trapped field among the studied rare earth elements. This research is significant in the field of high-performance superconducting ceramics since it allows for a better understanding of the role of the additional liquid phase during the TSMG process, the influence of different rare earth elements, and most importantly the impact of these techniques on the superconducting bulks.