Angular dependence of critical currents and transition fields of sputter-deposited superconducting films

Anisotropies in critical currents and transition fields have been measured for sputter-deposited superconducting films. For thicker films, the peak at θ = 90° in the Ic-θ characteristics is strongly marked. As the film thickness decreases, the peak at θ = 90° tends to reduce, and finally disappears in the film thinner than the critical thickness. Furthermore, the transition fields Ht have been found to be anisotropic with respect to the applied field direction θ. The marked peak at θ = 90° in the Ht-θ characteristics is found for films thicker than the critical thickness.