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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 16 February 2011
The new class of high-transition-temperature ceramic superconductors (e.g. Y-Ba-Cu-O) show a fine grain size polycrystalline structure, similar to that shown by the superplastic metals. The material behaves in a brittle manner with a strain to fracture below 0.5 % at room temperature. One of the reasons for this mechanical behavior is that the grain boundaries are easily separated when a stress is applied. It was found in this work that a deformation of the superconductor ceramic (scc) in superplastic metal (spin) matrix reduces the separation of the grain boundaries in such materials so that they can be deformed at room temperature. The spin matrixes used in this work were Zn-Cd, Bi-Sn and Cd-Sn. It was found that the highest the yield point of the matrix the highest the deformation induced in the scc. The Cd-Zn alloy was the most effective in avoiding the separation of the grain boundaries during the deformation of a composite formed by a cylinder of scc embedded in a spin matrix. Meissner effect was observed in the scc, after more than 160 % of plastic deformation. SEM observations show that deformation takes place by grain boundary sliding and some grain refinement was observed.