Strong enhancement of critical current density in MgB2 superconductor using carbohydrate doping

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that carbohydrate doping significantly enhances the in-field critical current density of MgB2 superconductors by over an order of magnitude without compromising self-field performance, offering a practical doping method.

Contribution

It introduces carbohydrate doping as an effective and accessible method to improve MgB2 superconductors' electromagnetic properties, surpassing traditional carbon doping limitations.

Findings

Increased in-field Jc by over ten times

No degradation of self-field Jc

Carbohydrate doping is practical and widely available

Abstract

With the relatively high critical temperature (Tc) of 39 K1 and the high critical current density (Jc) of > 100000 A/cm2 in moderate fields, magnesium diboride (MgB2) superconductors could offer the promise of important large-scale and electronic device applications to be operated at 20 K. A significant enhancement in the electromagnetic properties of MgB2 has been achieved through doping with various form of carbon (C). However, doping effect has been limited by the agglomeration of nano-sized dopants and the poor reactivity of C containing dopants with MgB2. Un-reacted dopants result in a reduction of superconductor volume. In this work, we demonstrate the advantages of carbohydrate doping over other dopants, resulting in an increase of in-field Jc by more than one order of magnitude without any degradation of self-field Jc. As there are numerous carbohydrates readily available this finding has significant ramifications not only for the fabrication of MgB2 but also for many C based compounds and composites.