PIXE and RBS analysis of Tl-1223 superconducting phase substituted by scandium

Ion beam analysis techniques (IBA) were performed to determine the elemental stoichiometry of superconducting samples of type TlBa2Ca2−xScxCu3O9−δ, with 0 ⩽ x ⩽ 0.6, prepared via solid-state reaction technique. By combining particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE) with Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), the stoichiometry of the samples is determined. However, the oxygen content is obtained by using non-Rutherford backscattering cross-section at 3 MeV proton beam. Furthermore, the prepared samples were also characterized using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and electrical resistivity measurements. The X-ray data indicate that the partial substitution of Ca2+ by Sc3+ ions does not affect the tetragonal structure of Tl-1223 superconducting phase. The superconducting transition temperatures Tc, determined from electrical resistivity measurements, was found to be highly correlated to the Sc-content.