Physical Properties of High-Tc Superconducting Bi1.6Pb0.4Sr2Ca2Cu3Oy Prepared by Sol-Gel and Solid-State Reaction Methods ☆

Bi1.6Pb0.4Sr2Ca2Cu3Oy (BSCCO) samples were prepared via sol-gel technique (SG) and solid-state reaction method (SSR) for comparison. The SG used pure metal acetate as precursors whereas the SSR started from conventional carbonate-oxide compounds. The volume percentage of high-Tc phase Bi-2223 in samples prepared by different routes was observed from XRD data. Results showed that the SG sample has higher percentage of Bi-2223 phase than that of the SSR counterpart. It was ~ 80 % and ~ 95 % for SSR and SG samples, respectively. The higher zero bulk resistance temperature (Tc0) of 101.5 K was found in SG sample, while the lower Tc0 value of 99.3 K was measured in SSR sample. Complex ac-susceptibility measurement showed that the nature of grains and grain boundaries associating to the superconducting properties were superior in SG sample. We pointed out that the SG is more suitable than SSR method in preparation of single phase BSCCO superconductor. Study of magnetic hysteresis loops also suggested the application capability of the synthesized BSCCO in the electric and magnetic fields