This investigation will use nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) to characterize the new copper oxide superconductors. A major goal is to develop a method for monitoring in situ the environment of copper atoms during high-temperature processing and to relate this data to physical properties of the superconductor. The oxygen near neighbors largely determine the electric field gradient (EFG) at the copper - and other cation - nuclei, so the EFG spectrum can be used as a measure of the perfection of the oxygen shell around that atom and, therefore, as a guide to appropriate processing technique. NQR spectral accumulation times may be as short as a few seconds to a few minutes(even at high temperatures). Consequently, NQR could be used as a real- time in situ guide for optimizing processing variables. The copper EFG distribution expects to correlate with the transition temperature and width of the superconducting transition.
