High-resolution electron microscopy study on crystal structures of high-Tc superconductors

Recent studies of high-resolution electron microscopy on the high-Tc superconductors of Y-Ba-Cu-O and Bi-Ca-Sr-Cu-O are presented. The observed images of crystals thinner than 3 nm, taken under conditions that approached the Scherzer defocus condition, directly show the arrangements of cations and oxygen-vacant positions. The results reveal structural characteristics of the atomic scale; this offers important insights into the origin of the high-Tc superconductivity. The usefulness of high-resolution electron microscopy for studying complicated crystal structures is demonstrated for the high-Tc oxides.