Development of textured MgO templates on nonmetallic flexible ceraflex

Reducing ac loss has become a critical issue in the development of high-Tc superconductor coated conductors (HTSCCs). One scheme is to replace the metallic substrates employed currently for HTSCCs with nonmetallic ones. The flexible ceramic polycrystalline ceraflex is a promising candidate while its rough surface presents a tough challenge in the development of textured templates needed for HTSCCs. By developing a surface smoothening process, high-quality biaxially textured MgO templates have been achieved on ceraflex. This work has overcome the major difficulties in texturing ceraflex surface for HTSCCs, which may provide a viable scheme for low ac loss HTSCC applications.