Growth and Properties of NdBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ/PrBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ Quasi-Homoepitaxial Multilayers

Abstract

Here, we report for the first time results on well-characterized c-axis quasi-homoepitaxial multilayers made of NdBa2Cu3O7-δ (NBCO) and PrBa2Cu3O7-δ (PBCO) films with very smooth surface morphology and high crystallinity, that were grown on SrTiO3 substrates by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) analysis provide evidence of long-range crystalline perfection, and a well equilibrated and relaxed crystal. Our results show the importance of using barrier layer materials of PBCO sandwiched between NBCO electrodes for the fabrication of electronic devices.