Low Microwave Surface Resistance in NdBa2Cu3O7-d Films Grown by Molecular Beam Epitaxy

Abstract

We report the growth of NdBa2Cu3O7-d films on (100) MgO substrate by Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE). Large area NdBa2Cu3O7-d films with homogeneous superconducting properties were grown by precise control of stoichiometry and the optimisation of growth parameters. The stoichiometric ratio of Nd:Ba:Cu close to 1:2:3 yields films with TC of 94 K and JC values above 3.5 MA/cm2 at 77 K on bare MgO substrate. The NdBa2Cu3O7-d films grown under optimised conditions had excellent in-plane texture and good metallicity. The most significant characteristic of our MBE grown NdBa2Cu3O7-d films is the very low microwave surface resistance values at all temperature range compared to its YBa2Cu3O7-d counterpart with typical value of ~870 micro-ohm at 77 K & 22 GHz. Our results on the MBE grown NdBa2Cu3O7-d films suggests that NdBa2Cu3O7-d is a superior choice for the realisation of commercial microwave applications.