Processing of Superconducting Ceramics

The discovery of oxide superconductors in the past two years with critical transition temperatures, T sub c, from 30 to 125K has spawned research activities on how to synthesize and process these materials with the eventual goal of fabricating shapes for engineering applications. For most of the known high T sub c superconducting oxides, synthesis of the compounds is straightforward. Conventional ceramic processing methods can be used to easily form the desired phases with the exception of some phases in the Bi-SR-Ca-Cu-O system where the kinetics of formation are slow. Fabrication of these powders into various shapes has also been successful in that reasonably dense structures have been formed in a variety ot geometrics.