The Role of Oxygenation on Superconducting Properties of RE3Ba5Cu8O18 (RE=Y, Sm and Nd) Compounds

This study reports the effects of oxygenation on new high-T (c) cuprates having the structure of RE3Ba5Cu8O18 (RE=Y, Sm and Nd) and T (c) (on) values of 96.5-97.5 K. The measurements have shown that excess oxygenation has no important contribution to the T (c) (on) values, but it improves T (c) (off) values significantly. From these three systems, RE = Nd is the most sensitive one to the oxygenation. Its T (c) (off) value increases by 13 K (from 78 K to 91.1 K) with post-annealing.