PERCOLATION EFFECTS AND OXYGEN INHOMOGENEITIES IN YBA2CU3O7-DELTA CRYSTALS
| Title | PERCOLATION EFFECTS AND OXYGEN INHOMOGENEITIES IN YBA2CU3O7-DELTA CRYSTALS |
| Publication Type | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication | 1992 |
| Authors | Osofsky, M. S., Cohn J. L., Skelton E. F., Miller M. M., Soulen R. J., Wolf S. A., and Vanderah T. A. |
| Journal | Physical Review B |
| Volume | 45 |
| Pagination | 4916-4922 |
| Abstract | The magnetization curves of YBa2Cu3O7-delta crystals are widely observed to exhibit a pronounced low-field minimum in the temperature range 30 K < T < T(c). We demonstrate that these magnetization anomalies correlate with the c-axis lattice parameter, and hence with the specific oxygen deficiency delta. We interpret this low-field feature in terms of a field-induced decoupling of regions of oxygen-rich material by boundaries of oxygen-poor material, a phenomenon reminiscent of the behavior in granular superconductors. A "phase diagram" that demarcates the multigrain onset as a function of temperature and delta is then constructed. The shape of the "phase boundaries" is described using a percolation model. This analysis demonstrates that magnetization is a very sensitive measure of crystal quality. |