Transport currents in Bi-2223/Ag tapes made using the tape-in-rectangular tube process, current distribution and Ic stress degradation

Using the tape-in-rectangular tube (TIRT) process, we have made multi-core Bi-2223/Ag tapes with various numbers of filaments (10-162), and with different filament architectures and orientations. We have measured the angular dependence of the transport current of the tape samples with 'parallel' and 'perpendicular' filaments. The transversal Ic distribution obtained by spatially resolved transport measurements ('magnetic knife') illustrates that the filament quality of the TIRT tapes is better at the tape edges than in the centre. The tapes were stressed by two types of tensioning set-up (a short straight sample and a U-shaped spring) and by bending at 77 K. The Ic degradation shows different behaviour for parallel and perpendicular filaments, which is attributed to the difference in filament density and crack propagation. (author)