IXXI. Kinetics of the phase transition in superconductors

Abstract

A study is made of the influence of electromagnetic effects on the speed at which a transition can occur between the normal and superconducting states of a metal in a magnetic field, and it is concluded that these are powerful enough to be the dominant factor determining the speed. Illustrative examples include the transition of a superconducting plane slab and cylinder in a field greater than critical, the destruction of superconductivity in a wire by means of a current, and the mechanism whereby the intermediate state is established.