Cuprate superconductors thin films

Conversion of cuprate oxide thin films into superconductors... 

Pulsed laser ablation has been developed in many fields for the fabrication of thin films of oxide materials, in particular high Tc cuprate superconductors. In these materials, the increase of the carrier concentration can be obtained in many cases by chemical doping (cationic or anionic), in order to induce superconductivity. 

The explosion of interest in cuprate superconductors (see Section 28.4) during the last two decades has led to active research interest into ways of depositing these materials as thin films. For example, CVD precursors and conditions for the deposition of YBa2Cu307 have included BaL2, CuL2 and YL3 (L = 28.6) with He/02 carrier gas, and an LaA103 substrate at 970 K. Progress to date, however, has not reached a level that makes CVD commercially viable. 

A second approach for the preparation of stable polymer/superconductor systems involves the use of a solution processible polymer such as a poly(3-alkylthio-phene). The advantage of this route is that the high oxidation conditions required for polymerization can be completed prior to exposure to the superconductor [25]. After formation, these polymers can then be dissolved in a dry solvent such as tetrahydrofuran, which is compatible with the cuprate superconductor, and thin films of poly(3-alkylthiophene) can be prepared via spin or spray coating [II]. 

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