Synthesis & Characterization of Entropy Stabilized YBCO Superconductors

Abstract

The nuanced causes of the ability of certain materials to obtain superconductivity, or zero resistance, are still a topic of debate. To further developments in this area of study, the synthesis and characterization of novel superconducting materials is essential. A relatively young method in materials science, entropy stabilization dopes lattice sites of a crystalline structure, which produces a large amount of electromagnetic and configurational disorder. This method has not been applied to the YBa2Cu3O7−δ (YBCO) superconductor, a well studied, high temperature, superconducting cuprate. In this paper, we present data gathered from entropy stabilized samples of YBCO using X-ray diffraction, and electrical transport. Expected results were found for Series A, whereas difficulties in finding a temperature entropy dominant Gibbs free energy for Series B led to phase impurities and insulating behaviors.