Preliminary investigation of Ic homogeneity along the longitudinal direction of YBCO coated conductor tape under tensile loading

Abstract

In this study, the homogeneity of critical current, Ic, along the lengthwise direction in the coated conductor (CC) tape under uniaxial tension was investigated using a multiple voltage tap configuration. Initially, a gradual and homogeneous Ic degradation occurred in all subsections of the tape up to a certain strain value. This was followed by an abrupt Ic degradation in some subsections, which caused scattering in Ic values along the length with increasing tension strain. The Ic degradation behaviour was also explained through n-value as well as microstructure analyses. Subsections showed Ic scattering corresponding to damaged areas of the CC tape revealed that transverse cracks were distributed throughout the gauge length. This homogeneous Ic degradation behaviour under tension is similar with the case under torsion strain but different with the case under hard bending which were previously reported. This behaviour is also different with the case using Bi-2223 HTS tapes under tension strain.