A modified citrate gel route for the synthesis of phase pure Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈ superconductor

A simple method for the bulk synthesis of 80 K bismuth-based superconducting phase (2212) is described. It employs a modified citrate gel route giving rise to an auto-ignited combustion process. The precursor ash obtained after combustion is further calcined at 800 °C to produce the desired superconducting powder with excellent homogeneity and fineness, leading to good sinterability and fairly sharp transition temperature. For a particular citrate-nitrate ratio, the nature of combustion of the gels containing two different bases has been compared. The thermal decomposition characteristics of the gels and the plausible mechanism of formation of the superconducting phase are also described.