Continuous deposition of ex situ YBCO precursor films on rolling-assisted biaxially textured substrates by electron beam evaporation

A reel-to-reel electron beam evaporation system has been developed to continuously deposit Y-BaF₂-Cu precursor for ex situ YBa₂Cu₃O_7-x (YBCO) processed films. The quality of a YBCO film on biaxially textured, oxide buffered, Ni tape strongly depends on the condition of the precursor deposit. For continuous precursor deposition, a uniform cation stoichiometry (i.e., Y:Ba:Cu = 1:2:3) over the entire length of precursor film is essential. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry studies indicated that the partial pressure of water vapor during the deposition has a significant effect on cation deposition rates and the oxygen content in the precursor film. The oxygen content of the precursor is increased and the precursor stability upon exposure to air is improved by introduction of water vapor during precursor deposition. High quality precursor films with a thickness of 300 nm have been deposited on lengths of rolling-assisted, biaxially textured substrates in the reel-to-reel electron beam evaporation system. In this paper, long length precursor deposition processing will be discussed. Properties of some post-annealed YBCO films will also be presented.