Growth of high quality large area MgB2 thin films by reactive evaporation

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel in-situ reactive deposition technique using a rotating pocket heater for producing high-quality, large-area MgB2 thin films with excellent superconducting properties and stability, suitable for practical applications.

Contribution

The authors present a new growth method enabling the fabrication of high-quality MgB2 films on various substrates, including large-area and double-sided films, with improved stability and superconducting characteristics.

Findings

Films exhibit Tc of 38-39 K with low resistivity

Method allows large-area, double-sided film growth

Films are stable upon exposure to atmosphere and water

Abstract

We report a new in-situ reactive deposition thin film growth technique for the production of MgB2 thin films which offers several advantages over all existing methods and is the first deposition method to enable the production of high-quality MgB2 films for real-world applications. We have used this growth method, which incorporates a rotating pocket heater, to deposit MgB2 films on a variety of substrates, including single-crystalline, polycrystalline, metallic, and semiconductor materials up to 4" in diameter. This technique allows growth of double-sided, large-area films in the intermediate temperature range of 400 to 600 degrees C. These films are clean, well-connected, and consistently display Tc values of 38 to 39 K with low resistivity and residual resistivity values. They are also robust and uncommonly stable upon exposure to atmosphere and water.