John Alphonse Agostinelli

Femtosecond optical absorption studies of nonequilibrium electronic processes in high Tc superconductors

We report the results of femtosecond optical transient absorption experiments performed on the superconducting compounds YBa2Cu3O7−x(x ∼ 0) and Bi2Sr2Ca2Cu3O10+δ(δ ∼ 0) and nonsuperconducting YBa2Cu3O6+y(y<0.4) for sample temperatures ranging from ∼7 K to room temperature. Nonequilibrium heating was found to occur on a subpicosecond time scale. A distinct, dramatic increase in the relaxation time was observed for the superconducting samples as the sample temperature was lowered below the critical temperatures of the respective films. Accompanying the increase in relaxation time was an increase in the peak fractional transmissivity change. No such changes were observed for the nonsuperconducting YBCO sample. We believe the above described behavior is electronic in origin and intimately related to the superconductivity of the compounds.

Epitaxial nonlinear optical films of LiTaO3 grown on GaAs in waveguide form

Nonlinear optical films of LiTaO3 were epitaxially grown on (NH4)2Sx‐treated (111) GaAs using e‐beam evaporated MgO as intermediate layers. The MgO lattice was found to rotate by 180° about the [111] surface normal with respect to the GaAs substrate. The laser‐ablated LiTaO3 film grew epitaxially in the preferred [0001] direction and formed a waveguide with its underlying buffer layer of MgO.

Subpicosecond time‐resolved studies of coherent phonon oscillations in thin‐film YBa2Cu3O6+x (x<0.4)

We report the results of the first time‐resolved observation of impulsively generated coherent optical phonon oscillations in the semiconducting cuprate compound YBa2Cu3O6+x (x<0.4). The oscillations, which were probed through time‐resolved transmissivity modulation, had a period of 237 fs at room temperature, corresponding to a Raman active mode of A1g symmetry at 142 cm−1. No oscillations were observed in the superconducting form of Y‐Ba‐Cu‐O either above or below Tc. The amplitude, frequency, and linewidth of this mode were measured over a temperature range from ∼7 K to room temperature.

Growth of superconducting Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x films on alumina, silicon, and fused quartz

Interactions between superconducting Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x films and substrates were investigated by ion backscattering, x‐ray diffraction, and four‐point probe resistivity measurements. During annealing at temperatures above‐ 800 °C, Bi2Sr2CaCu2 oxide films rapidly reacted with alumina, Si, Si covered with SiO2, and quartz, resulting in catastrophic failure. Zr‐based barrier layers were used to minimize film‐substrate interactions. When a single ZrO2 layer was interposed between the superconducting oxide film and the underlying substrate, the Bi2Sr2CaCu2 oxide films showed a large‐grained polycrystalline microstructure and exhibited the orthorhombic structure. Films on sapphire showed transitions to the superconducting state beginning near 100 K with zero resistance achieved at 70 K. Films on Si and thermally grown SiO2 showed a similar drop in resistance around 95 K, whereas the transition was broad and the zero resistance state was not reached. For films on quartz, high thermal stress caused cracking of the ...