Hot Isostatic Pressing of YBa ₂ Cu ₃ O _7‐δ and YBa ₂ Cu ₃ O _7–δ /Ag Composites

Abstract

Hot isostatic pressing (HIP) can be used to produce fully dense shapes of high‐temperature ceramic superconductors. Densification modeling of monolithic YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7‐δ and the composite YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7‐δ /Ag systems allows an understanding of the HIP process and has led to the development of successful protocols for HIP of these materials. Ag metal is the best encapsulation material found for both systems. HIP of monolithic YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7‐δ requires a slow ramp of pressure in order to prevent decomposition into more basic oxides such as Y 2 BaCuO 5 and CuO. HIP of composite YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7‐δ /Ag requires careful powder processing to obtain dense material with a fine dispersion of Ag.