Earticle

Superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) is a sensitive detector of magnetic flux signals. Up to now, the main application of SQUIDs has been measurements of magnetic flux signals in the frequency range from near DC to several MHz. Recently, cryogenic low-noise radio-frequency (RF) amplifiers based on DC SQUID are under development aiming to detect RF signals with sensitivity approaching quantum limit. In this paper, we review the recent progress of cryogenic low-noise RF amplifiers based on SQUID technology.

Rare-earth barium copper oxide (REBCO) coated conductor (CC) tapes have already been commercialized but still possess some issues in terms of manufacturing cost, anisotropic in-field performance, Ic response to mechanical loads such as delamination, homogeneity of current transport property, and production length. Development on improving its performance properties to meet the needs in practical device applications is underway and simplification of the tape’s architecture and manufacturing process are also being considered to enhance the performance-cost ratio. As compared to low temperature superconductors (LTS), high temperature superconductor (HTS) REBCO CC tapes provide a much wider range of operating temperature and a higher critical current density at 4.2 K making it more attractive in magnet and coil applications. The superior properties of the REBCO CC tapes under magnetic field have led to the development of superconducting magnets capable of producing field way above 23.5 T. In order to achieve its optimum performance, the electromechanical properties under different deformation modes and magnetic field should be evaluated for practical device design. This paper gives an overview of the effects of mechanical stress/strain on Ic in HTS CC tapes due to uniaxial tension, bending deformation, transverse load, and including the electrical performance of a CC tape joint which were performed by our group at ANU in the last decade.

We have investigated the effect of temperature and bias current on the stability of the inverse spin-switch effect in Permalloy(Py)/Nb/Permalloy pseudo spin-valves. The inverse spin-switch operates between two orientations of the ferromagnetic moments of Py layers; parallel (ON) and antiparallel-domain (OFF) state. Measuring time scans of the resistance changes between the ON and OFF state, ΔRON-OFF, while alternating magnetic fields between the two states at various temperatures and bias currents, revealed that enhancement of ΔRON-OFF is a key factor to achieve successful operation of superconducting spin switch.

In order to develop 2nd generation (2G) high-temperature superconducting (HTS) wires as commercial products, it is necessary to perform a high speed investigation of their superconducting performance. Room-temperature and non -contact optical scanning tools are necessary to verify the microstructure of the superconducting materials, the current flow below the critical temperature, and the critical current density. In this paper, we report our results of an inspection of the electrical transport properties of coated conductors. The samples that we used in our study were highly qualified rare-earth based coated conductors produced via co-evaporation, and SmBa2Cu3O7-y (SmBCO) was the superconducting materials used in our studies. A film grown on IBAD-MgO templates shows larger than 400 A/cm at 77 K and a self-field. The local transport properties of the films were investigated by room-temperature imaging by thermal heating. The room-temperature images show structural inhomogeneities on the surface of the films. Bolometric response imaging via low-temperature bolometric microscopy was used to construct the local current mapping at the surface. These results indicate that the non-uniform regions on the surface disturb the current flow, and laser scanning images at room-temperature and at a low-temperature suggest a correlation between the structural properties and transport properties. Thus this method can be effective to evaluate the quality of the coated conductors.

We investigate the upper critical field anisotropy ΓH and the magnetic penetration depth anisotropy Γλ of a high-quality FeSe1-x single crystal using angular dependent resistivity and torque magnetometry up to 14 T. High quality single crystals of FeSe1-x were successfully grown using KCl-AlCl3 flux method, which shows a sharp superconducting transition at TC ~ 9 K and a high residual resistivity ratio of ~ 25. We found that the anisotropy ΓH near TC is a factor of two larger than found in the poor-quality crystals, indicating anisotropic 3D superconductivity of FeSe1-x. Similar to the 1111-type Fe pnictides, the anisotropies Γλ and ΓH show distinct temperature dependence; ΓH decreases but Γλ increases with lowering temperature. These behaviors can be attributed to multi-band superconductivity, but different from the case of MgB2. Our findings suggest that the opposite temperature dependence of Γλ and ΓH is the common properties of Fe-based superconductors.

The upper critical field (Hc2) was determined by applying a magnetic field along the ab plane and c axis for two single crystals of BaFe2-xRuxAs2 (x=0.48 and 0.75). The anisotropy of the Hc2(0), γ(0)=Hc2 ab(0)/Hc2 c(0), was ~1.6 for x=0.48 and ~2.3 for x=0.75. The angle-dependent resistance measured below Tc allowed perfect scaling features based on anisotropic Ginzburg-Landau theory, leading to consistent anisotropy values. Because only one fitting parameter γ is used in the scaling for each temperature, the validity of the γ value was compared with that determined from γ=Hc2 ab/Hc2 c. The γ obtained at a temperature close to Tc was 3.0 and decreased to 2.0 at low temperatures. Comparing to the anisotropy determined for electron- or hole- doped BaFe2As2 using the same method, the present results point to consistent anisotropy in Ru-doped BaFe2As2 with other electron- or hole-doped BaFe2As2.

We report on the superconducting and structural characteristics of Pb-based alloy (Pb0.9In0.1, Pb0.8In0.2 and Pb0.85Bi0.15) thin films, depending on the film deposition rate. The maximum critical magnetic field strength of Pb0.85Bi0.15 is almost six times larger than that of Pb0.9In0.1, and more rapid growth of the film enhances the critical magnetic field strength even for the same alloy material. Scanning electron microscopy inspection indicates that lower deposition rate condition is vulnerable to the formation of void structure in the film. Topographic images using atomic force microscopy are useful to optimize the deposition condition for the growth of smooth superconducting film. Our work can be utilized for future studies on hybrid superconducting devices using low-dimensional nanostructures.

Quantum information processing using superconducting qubit based on Josephson junction has become one of the most promising candidates for possible realization of a quantum computer. In the heart of the qubit circuits, the superconducting microwave resonator plays a key role in quantum operations and measurements, which enables single- photon level microwave quantum optics. During last decade, the coherence time, or the lifetime of the quantum state, of the superconducting qubit has been dramatically improved. Among several technological innovations, the improvement of superconducting microwave resonator’s quality has been the main driving force in getting the qubit performance almost ready for elementary quantum computing architecture. In this paper, I will briefly review very recent progresses of the superconducting microwave resonators especially aimed for quantum device applications during the last decade. The progresses have been driven by ingenious circuit design, material improvement, and new measurement techniques. Even a rather radical idea of three-dimensional large resonators have been successfully implemented in a qubit circuit. All those efforts contributed to our understanding of the qubit decoherence mechanism and as a result to the improvement of qubit performance.

A liquid nitrogen-cooled prepolarization (Bp) coil made for ultra-low field nuclear magnetic resonance and magnetic resonance imaging (ULF-MR) designed to generate 7 mT/A was fabricated. However, with suspected internal insulation failure, the coil was investigated in order to find out the source of the failure. This paper reports detailed build of the failed Bp coil and a number of analysis methods utilized to figure out the source and the mode of failure. The analysis revealed that pyrolytic graphite sheet linings put on either sides of the coil for better thermal conduction acted as an electrical bridge between inner and outer layers of the coil to short out the coil whenever a moderately high voltage was applied across the coil. A simple model circuit simulation corroborated the analysis and further revealed that the failed insulation acted effectively as a damping resistor of Rd,eff = 6 Ω across the coil. This damping resistance produced a 50 ms-long voltage tail after the coil current was ramped down, making the coil not suitable for use in ULF-MR, which requires complete removal of magnetic field from Bp coil within milliseconds.

REBCO coated conductor (CC) tapes with superior mechanical and electromechanical properties are preferable in applications such as superconducting coils and magnets. The CC tapes should withstand factors that can affect their performance during fabrication and operation of its applications. In coil applications, CC tapes experience different mechanical constraints such as tensile or compressive stresses. Recently, the critical current (Ic) degradation of CC tapes used in coil applications due to delamination were already reported. Thermal cycling, coefficient of thermal expansion mismatch among constituent layers, screening current, etc. can induce excessive transverse tensile stresses that might lead to the degradation of Ic in the CC tapes. Also, CC tapes might be subjected to very high magnetic fields that induce strong Lorentz force which possibly affects its performance in coil applications. Hence, investigation on the delamination mechanism of the CC tapes is very important in coiling, cooling, operation and design of prospect applications. In this study, the electromechanical properties of REBCO CC tapes fabricated by reactive co-evaporation by deposition and reaction (RCE-DR) under transversely applied loading were investigated. Delamination strength of the CC tape was determined using the anvil test. The Ic degraded earlier under transverse tensile stress as compared to that under compressive one.

A numerical method of magnetic field calculation for the air-core solenoid is presented in this paper. In application of the Biot- Savart law, the magnetic field induced from the source current can be obtained by a double integration ormula. The numerical method named composite Simpson’s rule for the integration is applied to the program and the adaptive quadrature method is used to adjust the step size in the calculation according to the precision we need. When the target point is in the solenoid and the tegrand’s denominator may be zero in the process of calculation, the method still can provide an appropriate result. We have developed a program which calculates the magnetic field with at least 1ppm precision and named it as rzBI() to implement this method. The method has been used in the design of an MRI magnet, and the result show it is very flexible and convenient.

Output fluctuation which is generated in wind power farm can hinder stability of total power system. The electric energy storage (EES) reduces unstable output, and superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES) of various EESs has the proper performance for output compensation of wind power farm since it charges and discharges large scale power quickly with high efficiency. However, because of the change of current within SMES, the electromagnetic losses occur in the process of output compensation. In this paper, the thermal effect of the losses that occur in SMES system while compensating in wind power farm is analyzed. The output analysis of wind power farm is processed by numerical analysis , and the losses of SMES system is analyzed by 3D finite element analysis (FEA) simulation tool.

To minimize most heat loss of current lead for high-temperature superconducting (HTS) rotating machine, the choice of conductor properties and lead geometry - such as length, cross section, and cooling surface area - are one of the various significant factors must be selected. Therefore, an optimal lead for large scale of HTS rotating machine has presented before. Not let up with these trends, this paper continues to improve of diminishing heat loss for HTS part according to different model. It also determines the simplification conditions for an evaluation of the main flux flow loss and eddy current loss transient characteristics during charging and discharging period.

The superconducting fault current limiter (SFCL) is an electrical power system device that detects the fault current automatically and limits the magnitude of the current below a certain safety level. The SFCL module does not have any electrical resistance below the critical temperature, which facilitates lossless power transmission in the electric power system. Once given the fault current, however, the superconducting conductor exhibits extremely high electrical resistance, and the magnitude of the current is accordingly limited to a low value. Therefore, SFCL should be maintained at a temperature below the critical temperature, which justifies the cryogenic cooling system as a mandatory component. This report is a study which reported on the cooling system for the 154 kV-class hybrid SFCL owned by Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO). Using the cryocooler, the temperature of liquid nitrogen (LN2) was lowered to 71 K. The cryostat was pressurized to 5 bars to improve the dielectric strength of nitrogen and suppress nitrogen bubble foaming during operation of SFCL. The SFCL module was immersed in the liquid nitrogen of the cryostat to maintain the superconducting state. The performance test results of the key components such as cryocooler, LN2 circulation pump, cold box, and pressure builder are shown in this paper.

For a long-term space mission, filling process of cryogenic liquid propellant is operated on a space vehicle in space. A vent process during transfer and filling of cryogenic propellant is needed to maintain the fuel tank pressure at a safe level due to its volatile characteristic. It is possible that both liquid and vapor phases of the cryogenic propellant are released simultaneously to outer space when the vent process occurs under low gravity environment. As a result, the existing filling process with venting not only accompanies wasting liquid propellant, but also consumes extra fuel to compensate for the unexpected momentum originated from the vent process. No-Vent Fill (NVF) method, a filling procedure without a venting process of cryogenic liquid propellant, is an attractive technology to perform a long-term space mission. In this paper, the preliminary experimental results of the NVF process are described. The experimental set-up consists of a 9-liter cryogenic liquid receiver tank and a supply tank. Liquid nitrogen (LN2) is used to simulate the behavior of cryogenic propellant. The whole situation in the receiver tank during NVF is monitored. The major experimental parameter in the experiment is the mass flow rate of the liquid nitrogen. The experimental results demonstrate that as the mass flow rate is increased, NVF process is conducted successfully. The quality and the inlet temperature of the injected LN2 are affected by the mass flow rate. These parameters determine success of NVF.