Tuning the superconducting performance of YBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ films through field-induced oxygen doping

The exploration of metal-insulator transitions to produce field-induced reversible resistive switching effects has been a longstanding pursuit in materials science. Although the resistive switching effect in strongly correlated oxides is often associated with the creation or annihilation of oxygen vacancies, the underlying mechanisms behind this phenomenon are complex and, in many cases, still not clear. This study focuses on the analysis of the superconducting performance of cuprate YBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ (YBCO) devices switched to different resistive states through gate voltage pulses. The goal is to evaluate the effect of field-induced oxygen diffusion on the magnetic field and angular dependence of the critical current density and identify the role of induced defects in the switching performance. Transition electron microscopy measurements indicate that field-induced transition to high resistance states occurs through the generation of YBa₂Cu₄O₇ (Y124) intergrowths with a large amount of oxygen vacancies, in agreement with the obtained critical current density dependences. These results have significant implications for better understanding the mechanisms of field-induced oxygen doping in cuprate superconductors and their role on the superconducting performance.