Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 January 2011
The structural transformations occurring during the mechanical alloying of mixtures of elemental oxides in the Bi–Sr–Ca–Cu–O system have been studied. Metastable cubic structures with complete chemical disorder and amorphous phases can be synthesized by strong mechanical deformations. With proper thermal treatments, these metastable phases transform into the high Tc superconducting structures. Discussions on the mechanisms of formation and on the thermal stability of the various metastable phases are presented.