Abstract: A superconducting thin film is disclosed having columnar pinning centers utilizing nano dots, and comprising nano dots (3) which are formed insularly on a substrate (2) and three-dimensionally in shape and composed of a material other than a superconducting material and also other than a material of which the substrate is formed, columnar defects (4) composed of the superconducting material and grown on the nano dots (3), respectively, a lattice defect (6) formed on a said columnar defect (4), and a thin film of the superconducting material (5) formed in those areas on the substrate which are other than those where said columnar defects are formed.

Abstract: Disclosed is an oxide high temperature superconductor having a crystalline substrate of low dielectric constant formed thereon with a thin film of the oxide high temperature superconductor that is high in crystallographic integrity and excels in crystallographic orientation as well as a method of making such an oxide high temperature superconductor.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus which permits making a composite oxide thin film excellent in crystallinity easily and at a low temperature, with the capability of controlling the basic unit cell structure as desired, and without the need for a post annealing., as well as a composite oxide thin film thereby, especially a Cu group high temperature superconducting thin film, are disclosed. A thin Cu group high temperature superconducting film, which is constituted of a charge supply block (1) and a superconducting block (2), is formed on a substrate by alternately sputtering from a sputtering target having a composition of the charge supply block (1) and a sputtering target having a composition of the superconducting block (2) and repeating such an alternate sputtering operation a number of times needed for the film to reach a desired thickness.