Field-dependent transport and levitation properties of carbon-black reinforced MgB 2 superconductors fabricated by spark plasma sintering
Source abstract
Abstract
In this study, the effects of carbon black addition on the electrical, magnetic, and levitation properties of MgB2 superconductors produced using the SPS method were systematically investigated. Resistivity measurements were made in the 0–5 T magnetic field range for MgB2-xCx samples with different carbon contents, and the critical temperature behaviour and field dependence were evaluated. The obtained data were analysed using the WHH approach to calculate the variation of the upper critical field with temperature. Vertical (Fz) and lateral (Fx) levitation force experiments at 20 K revealed that the magnetic performance significantly decreases with increasing carbon content. Specifically, the maximum vertical levitation force (Fzmax) dropped from 4.92 N for the x = 0.1 sample to 0.57 N for the x = 0.4 sample, representing an 88% reduction. Similarly, the maximum lateral force (Fxmax) decreased by approximately 92%, falling from 6.38 N in the undoped sample to 0.47 N for the highest carbon concentration (x = 0.4). These quantitative results, coupled with the decline of connection quality and increased porosity, indicate that carbon black additives negatively affect macroscopic superconducting behaviour. The results suggest that carbon black is not an effective performance-enhancing additive for MgB2, but instead reduces the superconductivity and levitation properties by limiting the structural integrity.
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Research context
OpenAlex topics: Superconductivity in MgB2 and Alloys · Physics of Superconductivity and Magnetism · Boron and Carbon Nanomaterials Research
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Hakkari University
Funding
Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye-TUBITAK
References (47)
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