STRUCTURE AND SUPERCONDUCTIVITY OF Mg(B_1-xC_x)₂ COMPOUNDS

In this paper, we report on the structural properties and superconductivity of Mg(B_1-xC_x)₂ compounds. Powder X-ray diffraction results indicate that the samples crystallize in a hexagonal AlB₂-type structure. Due to the chemical activity of Mg powders, a small amount of MgO impurity phase is detected by X-ray diffraction. The lattice parameters decrease slightly with the increasing carbon content. Magnetization measurements indicate that the non-stoichiometry of MgB₂ has no influence on the superconducting transition temperature and the transition temperature width. The addition of carbon results in a decrease of T_c and an increase of the superconducting transition width, implying the loss of superconductivity.