Oxygen Annealing of GdBa2Cu3O7−$\delta$ Superconducting Thin Films: Influence of Annealing Time

GdBa
₂
Cu
₃
O
_7−$\delta$
(GdBCO) superconducting thin films, grown by Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) on MgO(100) single crystals are oxygen annealed using two different approaches:
in-situ
(oxygen annealing in PLD chamber) and
ex-situ
(oxygen annealing in tubular furnace). Their structural and transport properties are investigated in relation to annealing time (
t
_ann
) at 450
${^\circ }\text{C}$
.
In-situ
annealed GdBCO thin films require at least 15 min of annealing to achieve high in-field critical current densities (
J
_c
), while
ex-situ
annealed samples achieve high in-field
J
_c
already after 5 min of oxygen annealing at 450
${^\circ }\text{C}$
and 1 bar of oxygen pressure.