Applied Electromagnetics Using QuickField and MATLAB

Chapter 8.1 - Superconductivity: Theoretical Background

In This Chapter

  • Theoretical Background
  • London's Theory and the Meissner effect
  • Flux Quantization
  • Type I and Type II Superconductivity
  • Superconducting Geometries and Boundary Conditions
  • Superconducting Plates
  • Hollow Superconducting Shells
  • Layered Superconducting and Permeable Shields
  • Modeling Type II Superconductors

In 1911, Dutch physicist H. K. Onnes discovered superconductivity in mercury at a temperature of 4 K soon after he liquefied helium for the first time. Onnes was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on the properties of matter at low temperatures in 1913. Later, Fritz London developed a phenomenological theory of superconductivity in 1934 with his brother Heinz. The basic idea is that the electrons in a superconductor condense into a superfluid state characterized by a single rigid wavefunction ψ(r) = |ψ(r)|eiφ(r)also known as the order parameter. In 1950 Ginzburg and Landau generalized the London theory by introducing a complex, temperature-dependent order parameter. John Bardeen, Leon Cooper, and J. Robert Schrieffer reported the first microscopic theory of superconductivity in 1957 known as the BCS theory.

The superconducting state is characterized by (1) zero electrical resistance to current below a material dependent transition temperature Tc, Electron spins become oppositely paired resulting in the formation of a spin-zero quasi particle, or Cooper pair, that may pass through the material unimpeded.

Electrons in a superconductor condense into a superfluid-like state described by a single wave functionis the phase of the superconducting wave function. The resistance tree current inside a superconductor is described by

where are the electronic charge and mass, respectively.

Taking the supercurrent to be the density of superconducting electron pairs np equal to twice the electron carrier density ns the supercurrent

because of rigidity of wave function.

Modeling Superconductors

Analytical modeling techniques can be applied to sufficiently simple superconducting geometries such as a sphere, cylinder, or a disk in uniform external magnetic fields. Modeling complex superconducting shapes in the presence of magnetic sources requires numerical solutions for an accurate determination of the field distribution, especially near the superconductor. In many cases, the problem of a magnetic source in the presence of a superconducting shell can be reduced to a two-dimensional problem having planar or axial symmetry. In carrying out simulations in this chapter, the magnetostatics problem type is initially specified along with the designated x-y or r-z symmetry. Superconductors can also be modeled in Transient and Time-harmonic Magnetics in QuickField using boundary conditions on the vector potential or by assigning zero permeability.

 

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