Recent status on high temperature superconducting Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x wire development at NYSIS: 1-90 meter length Jcs and 3 meter diameter ring furnace design
The status of long length, Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x (Bi-2212) wire development at the New York State Institute on Superconductivity (NYSIS) is reviewed and updated. Transport Jcs (4.2K, 0 T) of Bi-2212/Ag oxide powder-in-tube singlefilamentary tapes have reached 70,000-80,000, 50,000-60,000, and 30,000–40,000 A/cm2 for 1, 4–15, and 40–90 meter length tapes, respectively. The decrease in Jc as the tape length was increased from 15 to 90 meters was attributed to the (measured) sensitivity of Jc to temperature nonuniformities (±3‡C) in the box-type furnace used for annealing. To reduce this problem, a ringtype high-temperature furnace (∼3 meter diameter) was designed and constructed which provides a large-volume (∼13w × 10h × 10001 cm) processing zone with expected excellent temperature uniformity (±0.5‡C). The advantages of the ring-type furnace for processing of kilometer-length conductors are described.