Elastic Properties of MgB₂ and SiC-Doped MgB₂ Superconductors

Abstract:

We investigated the elastic properties of MgB2 and 5 wt.% SiC-doped MgB2 superconductors utilizing the pulse-echo overlap technique. Longitudinal and shear ultrasound velocities were measured for each sample at 80 K and 300 K. The measured velocities at 80 K were used to calculate the various elastic moduli, i.e. longitudinal (CL), shear (G), bulk (B) and Young’s (Y) modulus, and the Debye temperature D, for both samples. The high D at 694 K and 706 K obtained for MgB2 and SiC-doped MgB2, respectively, provide strong evidences via direct acoustic measurements to support numerous theoretical and non-acoustic data-based calculations. At 300 K, the higher longitudinal velocity of the pure MgB2 compared to the doped MgB2 but converging towards the same value of longitudinal modulus at 80 K, seems to suggest that the SiC-doped MgB2 undergoes greater elastic stiffening through temperature range of 300 K down to 80 K. Using the D values, the electron-phonon coupling constant  was calculated within the BCS framework and the two dimensional van Hove scenario. The results led us to conclude that MgB2 is a moderately-strong coupled superconductor.

• Periodical: Advanced Materials Research (Volume 501)
• Pages: 304-308
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMR.501.304
• Online since: April 2012
• Authors: Nor Azah Nik-Jaafar, Roslan Abd-Shukor, S.K. Chen
• Keywords: Debye Temperature, Elastic Property, MgB₂, Ultrasound Velocity

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