title: High velocity vortex channeling in vicinal YBCO thin films.
abstract: We report on electrical transport measurements at high current densities on optimally doped YBa2Cu3O7-δthin films grown on vicinal SrTiO3substrates. Data were collected by using a pulsed-current technique in a four-probe arrangement, allowing to extend the current-voltage characteristics to high supercritical current densities (up to 24 MA cm-2) and high electric fields (more than 20 V/cm), in the superconducting state at temperatures between 30 and 80 K. The electric measurements were performed on tracks perpendicular to the vicinal step direction, such that the current crossed betweenabplanes, under magnetic field rotated in the plane defined by the crystallographiccaxis and the current density. At magnetic field orientation parallel to the cuprate layers, evidence for the sliding motion along theabplanes (vortex channeling) was found. The signature of vortex channeling appeared to get enhanced with increasing electric field, due to the peculiar depinning features in the kinked vortex range. They give rise to a current-voltage characteristics steeper than in the more off-plane rectilinear vortex orientations, in the electric field range below approximately 1 V/cm. Roughly above this value, the high vortex channeling velocities (up to 8.6 km/s) could be ascribed to the flux flow, although the signature of ohmic transport appeared to be altered by unavoidable macroscopic self-heating and hot-electron-like effects.
authors.affiliation: University of Vienna, Faculty of Physics, Boltzmanngasse 5, A-1090 Wien, Austria.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Puica
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lang
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Durrell
keywords: Cuprate superconductors; Flux creep; Flux flow; Guided vortex motion; Vicinal films; YBCO