The most common technique to fabricate $MgB_2$ superconducting wire is by powder-in-tube (PIT) technique. Therefore, the starting powder for the processing of $MgB_2$ superconductors is an important factor influencing the superconducting properties and performance of the conductors. In this study, the influence of magnesium precursor powders and annealing temperatures on the transition temperatures ($T_c$) and critical current densities ($J_c$) of $MgB_2/Fe$ wires was investigated. All the $MgB_2/Fe$ wires were fabricated by in situ PIT process. It was found that higher $J_c$ was obtained for $MgB_2$ wires with smaller particle size of magnesium precursor powders. The $J_c$ also increases with decreasing annealing temperatures.

We prepared four different $MgB_2$ films on $Al_2O_3$ by hybrid physical chemical vapor deposition method with thicknesses ranging from $0.65\;{\mu}m$ to $1.2\;{\mu}m$. X-ray diffraction patterns confirm that all the $MgB_2$ films are c-axis oriented perpendicular to $Al_2O_3$ substrates. The superconducting onset temperature of $MgB_2$ films were between 39.39K and 40.72K. The residual resistivity ratio of the $MgB_2$ films was in the range between 3.13 and 37.3. We measured the angle dependence of critical current density ($J_c$) and resistivity, and determined the upper critical field ($H_{c2}$) from the temperature dependence of the resistivity curves. The anisotropy ratios defined as the ratio of the $H_{c2}$ parallel to the ab-plane to that perpendicular to the ab-plane were in the range of 2.13 to 4.5 and were increased as the temperature was decreased. Some samples showed increase of $J_c$ and decrease of resistivity when a magnetic field in applied parallel to the c-axis. We interpret this angle dependence in terms of enhanced flux pinning due to columnar growth of $MgB_2$ along the c-axis.

Magnetization studies have been carried out on $MgB_2$ polycrystalline samples in the temperature range of 5 - 44 K and in the magnetic field up to 7 Tesla. The critical current density was calculated from hysteresis loops using the Bean's critical state model, and the highest value of $J_c$ at 20 K was $2.7{\times}10^5\;A/cm^2$ at 2 Tesla. The hysteresis loops were carefully examined to determine the temperature and magnetic field range where flux jumps appeared. The first jump occurred typically at 1 Tesla. Due to the strong pinning, we observed the presence of flux jump below H = 1 Tesla at temperature below 30 K.

For interlayer tunneling spectroscopy using a small stack of $Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_{8+x}$ (Bi-2212) intrinsic junctions in a high-bias range, large self-heating takes place due to the poor thermal conductivity of Bi-2212. In this study, we numerically estimate the self-heating around a Bi-2212 sample stack for I-V or dI/dV-V measurements. Our results show that the temperature discrepancy between the Bi-2212 sample stack and top Au electrodes due to bias-induced self-heating is small enough along the c-axis direction of Bi-2212. On the other hand, the lateral temperature discrepancy between the sample stack and the Bi-2212 on-chip thermometer stack can be as large as ${\sim}20\;K$ for the highest bias required to observe the pseudogap hump structure. We thus suggest a new in-situ ac thermometry, employing the Au current-bias electrode itself deposited on top of the sample stack as the resistive thermometer layer, which is supposed to allow safe temperature measurements for the interlayer tunneling spectroscopy.

In order to have a superconductive connection between the wire-wound pickup coil and input coil, typically Nb terminal blocks with screw holes are used. Since this connection structure occupies large volume, large stray pickup area can be generated which can pickup external noise fields. Thus, SQUID and connection block are shielded inside a superconducting tube, and this SQUID module is located at some distance from the distal coil of the gradiometer to minimize the distortion or imbalance of uniform background field due to the superconducting module. To operate this conventional SQUID module, we need a higher liquid He level, resulting in shorter refill interval. To make the fabrication of gradiometers simpler and refill interval longer, we developed a novel method of connecting the pickup coil into the input coil. Gradiometer coil wound of 0.125-mm diameter NbTi wires were glued close to the input coil pads of SQUID. The superconductive connection was made using an ultrasonic bonding of annealed 0.025-mm diameter Nb wires, bonded directly on the surface of NbTi wires where insulation layer was stripped out. The reliability of the superconductive bonding was good enough to sustain several thermal cycling. The stray pickup area due to this connection structure is about $0.1\;mm^2$, much smaller than the typical stray pickup area using the conventional screw block method. By using this compact connection structure, the position of the SQUID sensor is only about 20-30 mm from the distal coil of the gradiometer. Based on this compact module, we fabricated a magnetocardiography system having 61 first-order axial gradiometers, and measured MCG signals. The gradiometers have a coil diameter of 20 mm, and the baseline is 70 mm. The 61 axial gradiometer bobbins were distributed in a hexagonal lattice structure with a sensor interval of 26 mm, measuring $dB_z/dz$ component of magnetocardiography signals.

The baseline selection is the first and important step to analyze magnetocardiography (MCG) parameters. There are no difficulties to select the baseline between P- and Q-wave peak (P-Q interval) of MCG wave recorded from healthy subjects because the P-Q intervals of the healthy subjects do not much vary. However, patients with ischemic heart disease often show an unstable P-Q interval which does not seem to be appropriate for the baseline. In this case, T-P interval is alternatively recommended for the baseline. However, there has been no study on the difference made by the baseline selection. In this study, we studied the effect of the different baseline selection. MCG data were analyzed from twenty healthy subjects and twenty one patients whose baselines were alternatively selected in the T-P interval for their inappropriate P-Q interval. Paired T-test was used to compare two set of data. Fifteen parameters derived from the R-wave peak, the T-wave peak, and the period, $T_{max/3}{\sim}T_{max}$ were compared for the different baseline selection. As a result, most parameters did not show significant differences (p>0.05) except few parameters. Therefore, there will be no significant differences if anyone of two intervals were selected for the MCG baseline. However, for the consistent analysis, P-Q interval is strongly recommended for the baseline correction.

Myocardial ischemia causes heterogeneity of ventricular repolarization and sometimes produces changes of the ST-T wave in ECG. Therefore, morphological changes of ST-T waveform in ECG have a clinical significance in diagnosing myocardial ischemia. In this study, we investigated the ST-T changes caused by myocardial ischemia in magnetocardiography (MCG). We analyzed MCG patterns of biphasic T, ST segment deviations from baseline, main current angle of $T_{peak}$ and $T_{peak}$ dispersion in 300 CAD patients without ST elevation in ECG, 122 symptomatic patients and 48 normal subjects. MCGs were recorded by multichannel SQUID system in a magnetically shielded room. As results, we found that appearances of the abnormality were strongly correlated with the severity of myocardial ischemia. Also we found that the percentage of the patients showing MCG changes were higher than those in ECG. These results show that morphological changes of ST-T waveform in MCG can be used as a marker of myocardial ischemia.

We investigated signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) of magnetocardiography (MCG) signals using the first-order and the second-order gradiometers of different baselines. The MCG signals were recorded using a measurement system with 61 magnetometers which measured the normal magnetic component to the chest surface. The distance between the chest surface and the bottom of the dewar was changed from 0 cm to 15 cm, and the MCGs were measured for each distance. By subtracting the other signals (distance = 1 to 15 cm) from the reference signal (distance =0 cm), we could simulate the first-order and the second-order gradiometer signals with various baselines. In addition, to evaluate the reproducibility of the simulation, we fabricated the wire wound first-order and second-order gradiometers which measured a normal magnetic component to the chest surface. The baselines of the first-order gradiometers were, respectively, 50 mm, 70 mm and 100 mm and the baseline of the second-order gradiometer was 50 mm. Using these gradiometers, we recorded the MCG signal and compared the SNR between the simulation and the measurement.

We have investigated the optimum combination of the environmental noise condition and type of SQUID pickup coil in order to obtain maximum signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The measurement probe consists of 1st order gradiometer with pickup coils of 100 mm, 70 mm, and 50 mm baseline length, a 2nd order gradiometer with 50 mm baseline, and a magnetometer. The pickup coils are fabricated by winding Nb wire on a bobbin with 200 mm diameter. Noise and heart signal of a healthy male were measured by various SQUID sensors with different types of pickup coils in various magnetically shielded rooms (MSR), and compared to each other. The shielding factors were found to be 43 dB, 35 dB and 25 dB at 0.1 Hz for MSR-AS, MSR-BS, MSR-CS, respectively. White noises were $3.5\;fT/Hz^{1/2}$, $4.5\;fT/Hz^{1/2}$ and $3\;fT/Hz^{1/2}$ for the 1st order gradiometers, the 2nd order gradiometers, and magnetometer for all MSRs. SNR of the magnetometer was up to 56 dB in MSR-AS, while the 1st order axial gradiometer with 70 mm baseline length was up to 54 dB in MSR-BS. The 2nd order axial gradiometer with 50 mm baseline length of pickup coil was found to be up to 40 dB in MSR-CS.

We have installed a 61-channel magnetocardiography (MCG) system inside a magnetically shielded room (MSR) with a size of $2.4\;m\;{\times}2.4\;m\;{\times}2.4\;m$. The MCG system consists of 1st-order axial gradiometers containing double relaxation oscillation SQUIDs (DROSs) with pick-up coils of a base line of 70 mm. The MSR holds a shielding factor of 50 at 0.1 Hz and 10000 at 100 Hz, when its door in the middle on a front wall is closed. On opening the MSR door, we have obtained the characteristics of the MCG system with a 2.9 Hz noise generated from an air conditioning unit at 13 m distance off the MSR. In an open-door MSR ($140^{\circ}$ opening), a noise at the center channel increases up to $700\;fT/Hz^{l/2}$ at 2.9 Hz and $1.7\;pT/Hz^{1/2}$ at 60 Hz. MCG signals for a healthy human do not show distortion until the door opens to $45^{\circ}$, but show the effect of noise when the door opens further at $90^{\circ}$ and $140^{\circ}$. With the door opens to $45^{\circ}$, MCG measurement can be performed with ease of door operation and without creating claustrophobia for the patient.

The most recent improvement in the 10 V array system was carried out with focusing on noise reduction. We have evaluated the uncertainty of the 10 V Josephson array system after the improvement. The uncertainty evaluation of 10 V standard included a comparison with a programmable Josephson array system at 1 V. Every contribution to the measurement uncertainty was evaluated in the level of $10^{-10}$. The estimated combined uncertainty was found to be approximately $10^{-9}$ at 10 V, which was limited only by the indirect verifying method. In the near future, a direct comparison with another 10 V Josephson voltage standard is expected to be carried out to provide more accurate uncertainty evaluation for the KRISS Josephson voltage standard.

The effects of the heat-treatment temperature on the carbon (C) substitution amount, full width at half maximum (FWHM) value, critical temperature ($T_c$), critical current density ($J_c$) have been investigated for 10 wt % malic acid ($C_4H_6O_5$)-doped $MgB_2/Fe$ wires. All the samples were fabricated by the in-situ powder-in-tube (PIT) method and heat-treated within a temperature range of $650^{\circ}C$ to $1000^{\circ}C$. As the heat-treatment temperature increased, it seemed that the lattice distortion was increased by a more active C substitution into the boron sites from the malic acid addition. These increased electron scattering defects seemed to enhance the $J_c-H$ properties in spite of an improvement in the crystallinity, such as a decrease of the FWHM value and an increase of the $T_c$. Compared to the un-doped wire heat-treated at $650^{\circ}C$ for 30 min, the $J_c$ was enhanced by the C doping in a high-field regime. The wire heat-treated at $900^{\circ}C$ resulted in a higher magnetic $J_c$ of approximately $10^4\;A/cm^2$ at 5 K and 8 T.

We fabricated the in-situ $MgB_2$ wires using the powder-in-tube method and investigated the effects of sintering temperature and SiC contents on the microstructure and superconducting properties. Pure $MgB_2$ wires and 5, 10, 20 wt.% SiC doped $MgB_2$ wires were sintered at $600-1000^{\circ}C$ for 30 minutes in Ar atmosphere. We found that $MgB_2$ phase was mostly formed at the sintering temperature of $700^{\circ}C$ and above, and the critical temperature ($T_c$) increased with increasing sintering temperature. For the $MgB_2$ sintered at $850^{\circ}C$, the highest critical current density ($J_c$) was obtained to be $3.7{\times}10^5\;A/cm^2$ at 5 K and 1.6 T by a magnetic properties measurement system (MPMS). The addition of SiC to the $MgB_2$ wires changed microstructure and critical properties. SEM observation showed that the $MgB_2$ core had considerable micro-cracks in undoped wire and the density of micro-cracks decreased with increasing SiC contents. The critical temperature decreased as the SiC contents increased, on the other hand, the critical current density of SiC doped $MgB_2$ wires in high magnetic field was enhanced compared to that of undoped $MgB_2$ wires.

We characterized the highly refined boron precursor powders which were attrition milled for different milling times. $MgB_2$ powder precursor was formed from elemental crystalline Mg and amorphous B powder. The microstructure was investigated by SEM. SEM results indicate that the size of the milled powders was reduced with increasing milling time, which were varied from 0 to 8 hours. We also studied thermal behavior of the starting precursor by DSC as a function of milling time. The thermal behavior of the powder precursors was influenced by milling time. In order to determine the thermal events at DSC peaks, we annealed the milled powder mixture at $600^{\circ}C$ and $650^{\circ}C$ under protective gas and then analyzed the formation of $MgB_2$ by the XRD. We observed that superconducting $MgB_2$ phase was formed at lower temperature by the longer high energy milling. These results show that the high energy milling of the boron precursor powder can improve the reactivity for the formation of $MgB_2$.

Charcoal was used as a carbon source for improving the critical current density of $MgB_2$ and the effect of annealing temperature on the $J_c$ of $MgB_2$ was investigated. The charcoal powder used in this study was $1{\sim}2$ microns in size and was prepared by wet attrition milling. $MgB_2$ bulk samples with a nominal composition of $Mg(B_{0.95}C_{0.05})_2$ were prepared by in situ process of Mg and B powders. The powder mixture was uniaxially compacted into pellets and heat treated at temperatures of $650^{\circ}C\;-\;1000^{\circ}C$ for 30 minutes in flowing Ar gas. It was found that superconducting transition temperature of $Mg(B_{0.95}C_{0.05})_2$ decreased by charcoal additions which indicates the carbon substitution for boron site. $J_c$ of $Mg(B_{0.95}C_{0.05})_2$ was lower than that of the undoped $MgB_2$ at the magnetic fields smaller than 4 Tesla, while it was higher than that of the undoped sample especially at the magnetic field higher than 4 T. High temperature annealing seems to be effective in increasing $J_c$ due to the enhanced carbon diffusion into boron sites.

Lanthanum aluminate($LaAlO_3$) film has been prepared on single crystal and metal substrates by dip coating method. Lanthanum acetate and aluminum were prepared via ligand exchange starting from lanthanum nitrate hexahydrate and aluminum nitrate hexahydrate in acetate glacial acetic acid solution after being refluxed. Coating solution was obtained by diluting the gel with methanol and 2-methoxyethanol to adjust the total cation concentration to 0.67 M. Precursor coated film was prepared by dip-coating with a speed of 25 mm/min on various substrates such as $LaAlO_3$ (001), MgO(001), $SrTiO_3$(001) single crystal, LMO/MgO/Ni-alloy. Thin films have been obtained by heat treating the precursor film at various temperatures from $600^{\circ}C{\sim}900^{\circ}C$ and various heating rate from $0.83^{\circ}C/min{\sim}1.25^{\circ}C/min$ under $Ar/O_2$ mixture containing 1000ppm oxygen. The films have been characterized by scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). XRD analysis for the prepared film showed that $LaAlO_3$ thin films with a preferred orientation of (100) plane parallel to substrate surface were obtained at $800^{\circ}C(1.11\;^{\circ}C/min)$ on LMO/MgO/Ni-alloy substrate, but the intensity decreased with the increase of heat treatment temperature.

[ $YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-{\delta}}$ ] films have been prepared on $LaAlO_3$ (100) single-crystal substrates by the metal organic deposition using dichloroacetate precursors (DCA-MOD). DCA precursor solutions with different composition such as; Yttrium-excess(15 at%), barium-poor(25 at%), and a stoichiometric(Y:Ba:Cu=1:2:3) were prepared in order to investigate the effects of precursor composition on the properties of YBCO films prepared by DCA-MOD method. Coated films were calcined at low temperature up to $500^{\circ}C$ in flowing humid oxygen atmosphere. Conversion heat treatment was performed $800^{\circ}C$ for 2 h in flowing Ar gas containing 1000 ppm oxygen with a humidity of 9.45%. For the film prepared using excess yttrium composition, high critical current density ($J_c$) of $>2MA/cm^2$ was obtained whereas, for the films prepared using barium-poor composition, $J_c$ was lower than $1MA/cm^2$.

[ $YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-{\delta}}$ ] films have been prepared on $LaAlO_3$ (100) single-crystal substrates by a metalorganic deposition using dichloroacetate precursors (DCA-MOD). Calcination conditions were varied in order to optimize the microstructure and the superconducting properties of YBCO film. Coated films were calcined at various temperatures ranging from $400{\sim}700^{\circ}C$ in flowing humid oxygen atmosphere. Ramping rate to calcination tempertures was $2.22^{\circ}C/min$. Conversion heat treatment was performed at $800^{\circ}C$ for 2 h in flowing Ar gas containing 1000 ppm oxygen with a humidity of 9.45%. Observations of surface and cross sectional SEM microstructure showed that the particle size in the calcined film increased in the range of 100-200 nm with heating rate and the calcination temperature. SEM EDS analysis showed that 13 a/o of chlorine was contained in the calcined film. It was also observed that the porosity increased with the heating rate and temperature. Porous microstructure was developed when YBCO films were prepared using porous calcined film. Dense microstructure and high $J_c$ over $1\;MA/cm^2$ was obtained when calcination was carried out at the temperature of $500^{\circ}C$ with a heating rate of $2.22^{\circ}C/min$.

YBCO films have been synthesized using a spray pyrolysis method. We used nitrates of Y, Ba, Cu as precursors. Deposition was made on $LaAlO_3$ (100) single crystal substrate by spraying the mist of aqueous precursor solution generated by a concentric nozzle. The distance between concentric nozzle and substrate was 15 cm. C-axis oriented films were obtained at deposition temperature of $740{\sim}800^{\circ}C$ and working pressure of 20 Torr. Oxygen partial pressure was 3 Torr and substrate was transported with the speed ranging from 0.23 cm/min to 0.7 cm/min by reel to reel. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) observation revealed that films are smooth and highly textured with (001) planes parallel to substrate. Highest critical current density (Jc) was $1.38\;MA/cm^2$ at 77K and self-field for the film with a thickness of $0.5\;{\mu}m$ prepared at a substrate temperature of $780^{\circ}C$ and $PO_2\;=3\;Torr$. The effect of temperature on the microstructure and YBCO phase formation will be discussed.

Bi/CNT composite and resin/CNT were chosen to improve the mechanical properties of $YBa_2Cu_3O_7$(YBCO) superconductor. In order to elucidate the effects of Bi/CNT composite and resin/CNT in YBCO superconductors, melt texture superconductor were impregnated by mixed compound of Bi and CNT into the artificial holes parallel to the c-axis, which were drilled on the YBCO superconductor. Various amount of Bi/CNT and resin/CNT were impregnated to YBCO superconductor with different holes diameters. Typical artificial holes diameters were 0.5, 0.7, and 1.0 mm respectively. Result of three-point bending test measurement, the bending strength with resin/CNT impregnation was improved up to 59.64 MPa as compared with 50.79 MPa of resin/CNT free bulk. Resin/CNT impregnation has been found to be one of the effective ways in improving the mechanical properties of bulk superconductor.

We have investigated the effect of different heat treatment processes on electrical and magnetic properties of Bi2212/Ag ROSAT wire. The ROSAT wire was fabricated by stacking and arranging 12 filaments Bi2212/Ag tapes in triple rotation symmetry in a Ag tube. ROSAT wires have been prepared using a partial melting method with changing $T_{max}$ and $T_a$ in oxygen atmosphere. The highest critical current density($J_c$) at 65 K under 0 T was $21,158\;A/cm^2$ for wire prepared $890\;^{\circ}C(T_{max})$ and $840\;^{\circ}C(T_a)$, respectively. SEM results indicated that the wire prepared at $890\;^{\circ}C(T_{max})$ and $840\;^{\circ}C(T_a)$ showed better directional phases than the other samples. However the result of magnetic susceptibility measurement indicates that the wire prepared $890\;^{\circ}C(T_{max})$ and $835\;^{\circ}C(T_a)$ had better superconducting phases than the other samples. It was revealed that heat treatment temperature was important factor for superconducting properties of the ROSAT wire.

This study investigated the effects of different kinds of seed crystals with miscut angles and pretreatment on the characteristics of a RE-123 superconductor processed by a top-seeded melt-growth (TSMG) method. When the seed crystal was heat-treated in an oxygen atmosphere, the surface structure was cleaned removing hydroxide. When the seed crystal had a miscut angle, in addition, the surface structure showed a well defined hill-and-valley structure after heat-treatment. A better microstructure, with a well-distributed small RE-123 phase, was obtained using a high miscut angle after heat-treatment in an oxygen atmosphere. As a result of the microstructure improvement, the magnetic characteristics also improved. The experimental result can be explained by reduction of nucleation activation energy.

We investigated recovery in $Au/YBa_2Cu_3O_7$ (YBCO) thin film meander lines on sapphire substrates. The meander lines were fabricated by patterning YBCO films coated with gold layers. The lines were subjected to simulated AC fault current and then small current was applied for recovery measurements. The samples were immersed in liquid nitrogen during the experiment. After the fault, the resistance decreased linearly, first slowly and then fast to zero. The initial slow decrease was due to the decrease of the meander line temperature, whereas the fast decrease was originated from the transition from the normal state to the superconducting state. The recovery speed depended on the size of samples, and was faster in the smaller samples during the whole period of recovery. The experimental results were analyzed quantitatively with the concept of heat transfer within the sample and to the surrounding liquid nitrogen. A heat balance equation was solved for the initial phase of recovery, and an expression for the time dependence of resistance was obtained. The result agreed with data well.