The Effect of Sintering Time on Superconductor Wire Bi-Pb-Sr-Ca-Cu-O with Dopant Te Sheeted Ag Using Powder In-Tube Method

The use of silver and tellurium metals in fabricating superconductor material has been considered as promising materials. These metals are able to improve both mechanical and thermal stability. However, the fabrication of superconducting material is not merely affected by the composition of metals, but also the method in fabricating the material. To understand the effect of both factors, a study is conducted to investigate the effect of sintering time and dopant tellurium covered by silver sheet. The superconducting material was fabricated by powder in tube method composed with bismuth, lead, calcium, gold, and oxygen. The results showed that high time of sintering decreased the critical temperature of the superconducting material for over 20% from 65K to 51K. Morphological display showed that during high time of sintering caused melting of the grain even though the porosity was less. On the other hand, XRD pattern displayed that high time of sintering formed CuO and CaTeO₄ compounds considered as impurities. Overall, the length of time affects the superconducting properties including critical temperature and the purity of material. (paper)