Bulk, surface and shape contributions to critical current density in as-grown BSCCO-2212 single crystals. Part A-equilibrium behavior

A theoretical treatment for the prediction of the magnetization behavior, and hence also the critical current density, in a Type II superconductor of arbitrary shape is briefly reviewed. The treatment, which allows for the inclusion of explicit expressions for the constitutive equilibrium B^rev (H) relation, bulk vortex pinning and surface surface-barrier effects, is self-consistently applied to magnetization isotherms for as-grown, single-crystal BSCCO-2212 specimens with platelet, disc, and ´prism´ geometry. In this part of the work the treatment is used to obtain B^rev (H) and H_c1 (T) for this material, with the applied field, H_o, directed along the crystalline c-axis (specimen minor axis). In Part B (following paper) calculated normalized M(H_o/H_c1)/H_c1 curves are fitted to the normalized experimental magnetization isotherms for each specimen geometry to obtain the bulk critical current, J_c (B,T), behavior and the relative contributions to the magnetization isotherms from vortex pinning, specimen shape, and surface-barrier effects.