Magnetic Measurements and Kinetic Energy of the Superconducting Condensate in SmBa 2 Cu 3 O 7− δ

We report in-field kinetic energy results in the temperature region closely below the transition temperature of two differently prepared polycrystalline samples of the superconducting cuprate SmBa 2 Cu 3 O 7− δ . The kinetic energy is determined from magnetization measurements performed above the irreversibility line defined by the splitting between the curves obtained according the zero field cooling and field cooling prescriptions. The results are analyzed in the intermediate field regime, where the London approximation can be used to describe the magnetization. From the analysis, estimations are obtained for the penetration depth and the upper critical field of the studied samples. The difference between the magnitudes of the kinetic energy in the two studied samples is ascribed to granularity effects.