Structural and Superconducting Properties of Laser-Deposited (110)-Oriented $\hbox {YBa}_{2}\hbox {Cu}_{3}\hbox {O}_{7 - \delta }$ Thin Films After In Situ Annealing

Deposition and in situ oxygen annealing of YBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ (YBCO) thin films with 〈110 〉 perpendicular to the plane of the film were systematically studied for the detailed structure and superconducting properties of the films. The films were grown on SrTiO₃ (110) crystals with PrBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ (110) (PrBCO) buffer layer by pulsed laser deposition, and afterwards in situ annealed in normal O₂ pressure at different temperatures between 550°C and 925°C. It was found that superconducting properties cannot be induced in the (110) oriented phase with annealing; instead high-temperature annealing rearranged some of the material in the films to (103) and (001) orientations, which were found partly superconducting even at 90 K.