Reinforcing Increase of ΔTc in MgB2 Smart Meta-Superconductors by Adjusting the Concentration of Inhomogeneous Phases

Abstract

Incorporating with inhomogeneous phases with high electroluminescence (EL) intensity to prepare smart meta-superconductors (SMSCs) is an effective method for increasing the superconducting transition temperature (Tc) and has been confirmed in both MgB2 and Bi(Pb)SrCaCuO systems. However, the increase of ΔTc (ΔTc = Tc ‒ Tcpure) has been quite small because of the low optimal concentrations of inhomogeneous phases. In this work, three kinds of MgB2 raw materials, namely, aMgB2, bMgB2, and cMgB2, were prepared with particle sizes decreasing in order. Inhomogeneous phases, Y2O3:Eu3+ and Y2O3:Eu3+/Ag, were also prepared and doped into MgB2 to study the influence of doping concentration on the ΔTc of MgB2 with different particle sizes. Results show that reducing the MgB2 particle size increases the optimal doping concentration of inhomogeneous phases, thereby increasing ΔTc. The optimal doping concentrations for aMgB2, bMgB2, and cMgB2 are 0.5%, 0.8%, and 1.2%, respectively. The corresponding ΔTc values are 0.4, 0.9, and 1.2 K, respectively. This work open a new approach to reinforcing increase of ΔTc in MgB2 SMSCs.