Abstract
Current status and future prospects of developments of coated conductor and its applications in Japan were reviewed. Development of coated conductor and its applications has been investigated under the national project conducted by METI in Japan. Main objectives of this national project are the improvement of the superconductive properties and the reduction of the production costs. YBCO layers deposited by PLD, MOD and MOCVD on IBAD or Ni-W buffered alloy substrates have been investigated to obtain high Ic×L tapes with low cost and the specifications of the tapes approach to the application level. Ic×L values achieved in this project are the world record of MOD derived tapes and the former world record which was realized by PLD process. Lowering the production cost of the wires is still a big issue, however, the applications of coated conductors are close to be practical. AC loss reduction of coils has been firstly realized in the world only by the group in this project. Trial products of power cable and motor have been made by using the wires to study their potentials and issues to be addressed. Further investigation will be performed to lower the production cost and improve coated conductors based on the requirements of applications.
