Critical current density and resistivity of MgB2 films

The high resistivity of many bulk and film samples of MgB2 is most readily explained by the suggestion that only a fraction of the cross-sectional area of the samples is effectively carrying current. Hence, the supercurrent (Jc) in such samples will be limited by the same area factor, arising for example from porosity or from insulating oxides present at the grain boundaries. We suggest that a correlation should exist, Jc∝1/Δρ300–50 K, where Δρ300–50 K is the change in the apparent resistivity from 300 to 50 K. We report measurements of ρ(T) and Jc for a number of films made by hybrid physical-chemical vapor deposition which demonstrate this correlation, although the “reduced effective area” argument alone is not sufficient. We suggest that this argument can also apply to many polycrystalline bulk and wire samples of MgB2.