Progress on iron-based superconducting wires for practical applications
Iron-based superconductors exhibit numerous advantages,including ultrahigh upper critical fields,high transition temperatures,low anisotropy,and remarkable transport current density.Furthermore,they can be made into superconducting wires and tapes by the economical powder-in-tube method.At present,the utilization of pressure sintering densification and grain texture technology has rendered the transport critical current density of iron-based superconducting tapes to exceed the practical level of 105A/cm2 under a magnetic field of 10T.Compared with superconducting tapes,the wires exhibit a more symmetrical cross-sectional shape,which makes it easier to twist the cables,thereby reducing the electromagnetic coupling effect of the wires,improving current uniformity and stability,and meeting the requirements of high-field applications such as magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)systems,nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR)systems,high-energy accelerators,and nuclear fusion reactors.This article presents an overview of the development and current status of iron-based superconducting wires;systematically introduces precursor powder preparation,cold working processes,and heat treatment technologies;and elaborates on the microstructure and flux-pinning characteristics that influence the transport performance of wires,including wires with different metal sheathes and multifilament wires.Last,a summary of studies on iron-based superconducting wires is presented,and future development trends are discussed.
iron-based superconductorpowder-in-tube methodcritical current densityiron-based superconducting wires