Individual Effects of Plastic Deformation and the Decomposition of the Solid Solution on the Critical Current of Superconducting Alloys of the Nb—Ti and Nb—Zr Systems

Abstract

The separate effects of plastic deformation and the decomposition of the solid solution as a result of annealing Nb-Zr and Nb-Ti alloys on the superconducting parameters is studied. Both these processes increase the critical current of the alloys. The existence of decomposition processes in the alloys enables the critical current to be increased by over an order for a particular degree of decomposition. A high degree of preliminary deformation accelerates decomposition and in this case a high critical current may be achieved after shorter annealing periods than in the case of recrystallized material.