Superconducting anisotropy and vortex pinning in CaKFe_(4)As_(4) and KCa_(2)Fe_(4)As4F_(2)

The vortex pinning determining the current carrying capacity of a superconductor is an important property to the applications of superconducting materials.For layered superconductors,the vortex pinning can be enhanced by a strong interlayer interaction in accompany with a suppression of superconducting anisotropy,which remains to be investigated in iron based superconductors(FeSCs)with the layered structure.Here,based on the transport and magnetic torque measurements,we experimentally investigate the vortex pinning in two bilayer FeSCs,CaKFe_(4)As_(4)(Fe1144)and KCa_(2)Fe_(4)As4F_(2)(Fe12442),and compare their superconducting anisotropyγ.While the anisotropyγ≈3 for Fe1144 is much smaller thanγ≈15 in Fe12442 around Tc,a higher flux pinning energy as evidenced by a higher critical current density is found in Fe1144,as compared with the case of Fe12442.In combination with the literature data of Ba_(0.72)K_(0.28)Fe2As_(2) and Nd Fe As_(O0.82)F_(0.18),we reveal an anti-correlation between the pinning energy and the superconducting anisotropy in these Fe SCs.Our results thus suggest that the interlayer interaction can not be neglected when considering the vortex pinning in Fe SCs.

Evaluation of temperature dependent vortex pinning properties in strongly pinned YBa_(2)Cu_(3)O_(7-δ)thin films with Y_(2)BaCuO_(5)nanoinclusions

The pinning of quantized magnetic vortices in superconducting YBa_(2)Cu_(3)O_(7-δ)(YBCO or Y123)thin films with Y_(2)BaCuO_(5)(Y211)nanoinclusions have been investigated over wide temperature range(4.2-77 K).The concentration of Y211 nanoinclusions has been systematically varied inside YBCO thin films prepared by laser ablation technique using surface modified target approach.Large pinning force density values(Fp∼0.5 TNm^(−3)at 4.2 K,9 T)have been observed for the YBCO film with moderate concentration of Y211 nanoinclusions(3.6 area%on ablation target).In addition,uniform enhancement in critical current density(J_(c))was observed in the angular dependent J_(c)measurement of YBCO+Y211 nanocomposite films.Y211 nanoinclusions have been found to be very efficient in pinning the quantized vortices thereby enhancing the in‐field J_(c)values over a wide range of temperature.Increasing the concentration of Y211 secondary phase into Y123 film matrix results into agglomeration of Y211 phase and observed as increased Y211 nanoparticle size.These larger secondary phase nanoparticles are not as efficient pinning centers at lower temperatures as they are at higher temperatures due to substantial reduction of the coherence length at lower temperatures.Investigation of the temperature dependence of J_(c)for YBCO+Y211 nanocomposite films has been conducted and possible vortex pinning mechanism in these nanocomposite films has been discussed.

A review of vortex pinning in REBa_(2)Cu_(3)O_(7-x) coated conductors

REBa_(2)Cu_(3)O_(7-x)exhibits outstanding qualities such as a high irreversible field(7 T)and strong current-carrying capacity(77 K,10^(6) A cm^(-2)),making it ideal for high magnetic field applications such as fusion,accelerators,and nuclear magnetic resonance.However,the degradation of in-field critical current density(Jc)due to vortex motion is a significant hurdle.Research indicates that improving vortex pinning can notably enhance Jc in REBCO,showing promise for its future high-field applications.This review explores vortex pinning mecha-nisms,artificial pinning centers(APCs),and how environmental conditions affect pinning characteristics,highlighting advancements in vortex pinning for REBCO in magnetic fields.Different methods for introducing APCs are discussed and compared for evaluating their efficacy in achieving optimal nanoparticle distri-butions and consequent superconducting performance improvements,under-scoring the importance of nano-defect features(type,size,and distribution)in optimizing the superconducting properties of the REBCO.Additionally,the re-view tackles current challenges,shares recent research breakthroughs,and out-lines future research directions for designing pinning landscapes to further improve REBCO performance.

Phase-field simulation of superconductor vortex clustering in the vicinity of ferromagnetic domain bifurcations

Superconductors and ferromagnets are highly non-compatible materials due to the natures of their respective electronic states.But when artificially brought together,they develop interesting characteristics,one of which,vortex clustering,is discussed here in this paper.Phase-field and micromagnetic simulations are performed to investigate the superconductor and ferromagnet bilayer,respectively.The ferromagnet with uniaxial anisotropy is observed to develop the maze domain,whereas the superconductor subjected to the influence of the ferromagnetic stray field displays a vortex pattern.Clustered vortices in superconductors at certain locations are observed to be precisely located over magnetic domain bifurcations.The enhanced out-of-plane stray field at bifurcations around the curved domain walls and the convergent Lorentz force due to screening currents in superconductor are attributed to the formation of clusters at bifurcation sites.Segregation of the inter-vortex spacing between straight and bifurcated domain is clearly observed.More importantly,inter-vortex spacing is predicted to serve as a precise tool to map local ferromagnet domain shapes.