Pressure Effects on Tc of Superconductor YBa2Cu4O8

The enhancement of the superconducting transition temperature by pressure was studied up to 2 GPa for an YBa2Cu4O8 compound which was synthesized by using the canned HIP technique. The value of dTc/dP was found to be 5.5 K/GPa. From the experiments of the specimen in which YBa2Cu4O8 and Y2Ba4Cu7O14 compounds coexist, dTc/dP for Y2Ba4Cu7O14 was also shown to be 5.5 K/GPa. The result for the YBa2Cu4O8 compound is explained by the pressure induced carrier (hole) redistribution on the basis of the calculation of the Madelung energy.