Influence of Metal Diboride and Dy2O3 Additions on Microstructure and Properties of MgB2 Fabricated at High Temperatures and under Pressure

High temperatures and under pressure (HTP) processing has been used to study the effects of chemical doping in MgB2. ZrB2, TiB2 and NbB2 were selected as additives since, like MgB2, they have an AlB2-type structure and similar lattice parameters. Dy2O3 was selected as it has been reported to generate nanoscale, secondary intragrain phases in MgB2. While C is known to enter the B-sublattice readily, attempts to dope Zr and other elements onto the Mg site have been less successful due to slow bulk diffusion, low solubility in MgB2, or both. We have used high-temperature, solid-state sintering (1500 °C), as well as excursions through the peritectic temperature (up to 1700 °C), to investigate both of these limitations. Bulk MgB2 samples doped with MB2 (M = Zr, Ti and Nb) and Dy2O3 additions were synthesized and then characterized. Lattice distortion and high densities of crystal defects were observed in the MgB2 grains around nano-sized MB2 inclusions, this highly defected band contributed to a large increase in Bc2 but was not large enough to increase the irreversibility field. In contrast, distributed intragrain precipitates were formed by Dy2O3 additions which did not change the lattice parameters, Tc, Tc distribution or Bc2 of MgB2, but modified the flux pinning.