Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 February 2011
Basic thin film deposition processes for the high-Tc superconductors of Bi-systems are described. There appear several superconducting phases including the low-Tc phase Bi2Sr2Ca1 Cu2Ox and the high-Tc phase Bi2Sr2Ca2Cu3Ox. Thin films with these superconducting phases are synthesized by a selection of the substrate temperature Ts during the deposition : the high-Tc phase with Tc=100K is synthesized at Ts>800 °C; the low-Tc phase with Tc=80K, at Ts<600°C. However, these films often comprise show structure comprizing the different superconducting phases.
The close control of the superconducting phase has been achieved by the layer-by-layer deposition in the atomic layer epitaxy process.