COMPOSITION DEPENDENCE OF SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND CRYSTAL STRUCTURE IN La(Ba1−xCax)2Cu3O7−y SYSTEM

Abstract

The composition dependence of superconductivity and crystal structure in La ( Ba 1−x Ca x)2 Cu 3 O 7−y system was determined by the resistivity measurements and X-ray diffraction analysis. The superconducting transition temperature is raised with the increase of Ca content till x=0.6, at which the zero resistance temperature of the sample is 81.5 K. In the meanwhile, the crystal structure of the sample changed from tetragonal (x=0) to orthorhombic structure (x=0.2, 0.4, 0.6). With further increase of Ca content, the superconductivity decrease for the sample of x=0.8 with mixed phases including the orthorhombic oxygen-deficient perovskite-like (ODP) structure and no superconducting transition is found at 4.2 K for the sample of x=1 without the ODP structure. A possible explanation of these experimental results is given.