MgB2 superconducting whiskers synthesized by using the hybrid physical-chemical vapor deposition

J Am Chem Soc. 2009 Feb 25;131(7):2436-7. doi: 10.1021/ja8087828.

Abstract

In this work, MgB(2) whiskers were fabricated on a copper substrate by using the hybrid physical-chemical vapor deposition, which was one of the most effective ways to make high quality pure MgB(2) films, with the possible growth mechanism discussed. The whiskers are hexagonal and conelike and grow along the [0001] direction with a single-crystal structure. The onset transition temperature is approximately 39 K, which is among the best in the published nanostructure MgB(2) papers. Fabrication of nanoscale MgB(2) whiskers provides the fundamental understanding of the effect of dimensionality and size on superconductivity.