Intrinsic defect structures of polycrystalline CaKFe4As4 superconductors

Autor: Yoshiyuki Yoshida, Taichiro Nishio, Akira Iyo, Yoshihisa Kamiya, Hiroshi Eisaki, Shigeyuki Ishida, Keiichi Yanagisawa, Kenji Kawashima, Yoshinori Tsuchiya, Hiraku Ogino, Koji Kimoto, Pavan Kumar Naik Sugali
Rok vydání: 2021
Předmět:
Zdroj: Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics. 23:19827-19833
ISSN: 1463-9084
1463-9076
DOI: 10.1039/d1cp02613e
Popis: We investigated the defect structures of polycrystalline CaKFe4As4 (CaK1144) superconductors by scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). The STEM studies revealed the presence of a one-layer CaFe2As2 (∼1 nm size) defect along the ab-plane, as observed in single crystalline CaK1144. Step-like CaFe2As2 defects are also observed. These nanoscale defects generate fine-sized stacking faults, a lattice mismatch, and stress field defects in the matrix of CaK1144 owing to the different sizes. Correlation of the defects in polycrystalline and single crystalline samples suggests that the defects type and their density depend on the synthesis conditions. A self-field critical current density (Jc) of 15.2 kA cm−2 was obtained at 5 K, and the curves were sustained above 30 K with a considerable Jc value of 1.4 kA cm−2. We investigated the relationship between the observed intrinsic defects and the behavior of the field dependence of Jc. The intrinsically intergrown planar defects, even in polycrystalline samples, are expected to be advantageous for various high-field applications of bulk CaK1144 superconductors.
Databáze: OpenAIRE