Chapter 14 Synthesis and Structural Studies of Superconducting Perovskite GdBa2Ca3Cu4O10.5+d Nanosystems

Jul 16, 2026

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The chapter presents the design, solid-state synthesis, and structural characterization of nanocrystalline superconducting perovskite GdBa2Ca3Cu4O10.5+d (GBCCO 1234), a type-2 high-Tc cuprate with superconductivity arising in copper-oxide planes within layered ABO3 perovskite architecture. It outlines reagent selection (Gd2O3, BaCO3, CaO, CuO), stoichiometric formulation, extended manual/ball milling and calcination steps, and discusses how calcination conditions influence density and phase formation. Structural analysis targets XRD-based studies of crystallite size via Debye–Scherrer and Williamson–Hall approaches.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages23

Reading Time58 min

Chapter Outline

Introduction

Experimental section

Materials

Synthesis

Characterization

Results and discussion

XRD analysis of GBCCO

Particle size of GBCCO

Conclusion

CHAPTER 14 Synthesis and structural studies of superconducting perovskite GdBa2 Ca3 Cu4 O 10.5þd nanosystems V.S. Vinila, Jayakumari Isac Centre for Condensed Matter, Department of Physics, CMS College, Kottayam, Kerala, India Chapter Outline 1. Introduction 319 2. Experimental section 320 2.1 Materials 320 2.2 Synthesis 320 2.3 Characterization 322 3. Results and discussion 322 3.1 XRD analysis of GBCCO 322 3.2 Particle size of GBCCO 324 3.2. 1 Using Debye Scherrer equation 324 3.2.2 Using Williamson Hall plot 332 4. Conclusion 337 Acknowledgments 337 References 338 1. Introduction Superconducting ceramics are electronic ceramics with innumerable properties and potential applications [1] . They include superconducting power transmission wires, passive RF, powerful electromagnets, radars, superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDS), beam steering magnets in particle accelerators, magnetic ﬁeld detectors and Josephson junctions, magnetic levitation, logic, and storage functions in computers, RSFQ logic, magnetic separation, integrated circuits, magnetic energy storage devices, Maglev trains, magnets for MRI and other imaging applications in medical ﬁeld and ultrafast superconductive switches [2e4].Cuprates are widely studied ceramic superconductors, because of their high values of transition temperatures [5e7] . Gd based cuprate Design, Fabrication, and Characterization of Multifunctional Nanomaterials. [https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-820558-7.00022-4](https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-820558-7.00022-4) [Copyright](Copyright) © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. superconductors attracted the attention of many researchers due to their immense superconducting, magnetic and thermoelectric applications [8e10] . Mo¨ssbauer studies on Gd based Bismuth ceramic superconductors [11], stabilization of the tetragonal phase and superconducting behavior of RBa2(Cu 1􀀁x Fex)3Oy (R ¼ Y, Gd) [12], thermodynamicstabilities of RCoO3 (R ¼ Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd or Dy) using solid oxideeelectrolyte emf technique [13] and grain reﬁnement and enhancement of critical current density in the V0.60Ti0.40 alloy superconductor with Gd addition [14] have been studied. Electric ﬁeld in Eu, Gd and Yb based high Tc superconductors have been analyzed [15] . Trapped ﬁeld of 17.6T in melt-processed, bulk Gd-Ba-Cu-O reinforced with shrink-ﬁt steel has been reported [16] . In this work, focus is on the designing, synthesis and structural studies of nanocrystalline, superconducting perovskite GdBa2Ca3Cu4O 10.5þd or GBCCO 1234 (as per the conventional nomenclature of ceramic superconductors) or simply GBCCO which is a type 2, high Tc superconductor (HTSC) which enters into its superconducting state at high values of temperature (materials showing superconductivity at high temperatures, approximately above 30 K are generally called “high temperature [high Tc] superconductors” or HTSC [17]) . It belongs to the family of quasi two-dimensional cuprate superconductors named Ba2Ca(n-1)CunO(2nþ4-d) where n ¼ 2,3,4 etc. [18]; “n” takes the value four in GBCCO. They share a two-dimensional layered perovskite of ABO3 structure [19,20] with superconductivity taking place in a copper-oxide plane [21] . Alternating layers of oxygen deﬁcient copper-oxide planes produce superconductivity in oxy carbonate cuprates [22] . Element Gd which shows superconducting properties [23] is used, so as to enhance superconductivity in the ﬁnal ceramic. As far as the available information, GBCCO is a new material. 2. Experimental section 2.1 Materials Gadolinium Oxide (Gd2O3), Barium Carbonate (BaCO3), Calcium Oxide (CaO) and Cupric Oxide (CuO) (reagents are of 99.99% purity, Fisher Scientiﬁc chemicals) . 2.2 Synthesis GBCCO is designed and synthesized via solid state reaction route following steps such as selection of precursor powders, weighing them according to molecular formula of the desired product, manual mixing, mechanical mix

FAQs

What material is synthesized and studied in this chapter?

The chapter focuses on nanocrystalline superconducting perovskite GdBa2Ca3Cu4O10.5+d, referred to as GBCCO (GBCCO 1234).

How is GBCCO synthesized?

GBCCO is synthesized via a solid-state reaction route using precursors Gd2O3, BaCO3, CaO, and CuO, followed by extended mixing, calcination at an optimum temperature, and associated processing steps before characterization.

Which methods are used for structural and crystallite size analysis?

The chapter reports XRD analysis of GBCCO and determines particle/crystallite size using the Debye–Scherrer equation and the Williamson–Hall plot approach.

Jul 16, 2026

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