IBAD-MgO technology for coated conductors

Abstract

Ion-beam assisted deposition (IBAD) technology has been successfully applied to high-temperature superconductor coated conductors (CC) as textured substrates. Since the coated conductors were proposed as a potential framework for utilizing the superior transport characteristics of YBa2Cu3O7 and related cuprate oxides, several methods including rolling-assisted bi-axial textured substrates (RABiTS) and inclined substrate deposition (ISD), as well as IBAD, have been attempted. As of 2016, most companies that are trying to commercialize CC adapt IBAD technology except for American Superconductors who use RABiTS predominantly. For the materials in the IBAD process, initial efforts to use yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) or related fluorites in Fujikura in Japan have quickly given way to MgO which technique was developed by Stanford University in the USA. In this review, we present a historical overview of IBAD technology, in particular, for the application of CC. We describe the key scientific understanding of nucleation, the texturing mechanism, and the growth of large bi-axial grains and discuss some potential new IBAD materials and systems for large-scale production. © 2016, Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics (PSAC). All rights reserved.