Hysteretic ac loss of superconducting strips simultaneously exposed to ac transport current and phase-different ac magnetic field

A simple analytical expression is presented for hysteretic ac loss $Q$ of a superconducting strip simultaneously exposed to an ac transport current $I_0\cos\omega t$ and a phase-different ac magnetic field $H_0\cos(\omega t+\theta_0)$. On the basis of Bean's critical state model, we calculate $Q$ for small current amplitude $I_0\ll I_c$, for small magnetic field amplitude $H_0\ll I_c/2\pi a$, and for arbitrary phase difference $\theta_0$, where $I_c$ is the critical current and $2a$ is the width of the strip. The resulting expression for $Q=Q(I_0,H_0,\theta_0)$ is a simple biquadratic function of both $I_0$ and $H_0$, and $Q$ becomes maximum (minimum) when $\theta_0=0$ or $\pi$ ($\theta_0=\pi/2$).Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, submitted to Appl. Phys. Let

Inductive measurements of third-harmonic voltage and critical current density in bulk superconductors

We propose an inductive method to measure critical current density $J_c$ in bulk superconductors. In this method, an ac magnetic field is generated by a drive current $I_0$ flowing in a small coil mounted just above the flat surface of superconductors, and the third-harmonic voltage $V_3$ induced in the coil is detected. We present theoretical calculation based on the critical state model for the ac response of bulk superconductors, and we show that the third-harmonic voltage detected in the inductive measurements is expressed as $V_3= G_3\omega I_0^2/J_c$, where $\omega/2\pi$ is the frequency of the drive current, and $G_3$ is a factor determined by the configuration of the coil. We measured the $I_0$-$V_3$ curves of a melt-textured $\rm YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-\delta}$ bulk sample, and evaluated the $J_c$ by using the theoretical results.Comment: 3 pages, 1 figure, submitted to Appl. Phys. Let

Hysteretic ac loss of polygonally arranged superconducting strips carrying ac transport current

The hysteretic ac loss of a current-carrying conductor in which multiple superconducting strips are polygonally arranged around a cylindrical former is theoretically investigated as a model of superconducting cables. Using the critical state model, we analytically derive the ac loss $Q_n$ of a total of $n$ strips. The normalized loss $Q_n/Q_1$ is determined by the number of strips $n$ and the ratio of the strip width $2w$ to the diameter $2R$ of the cylindrical former. When $n>> 1$ and $w/R<< 1$, the behavior of $Q_n$ is similar to that of an infinite array of coplanar strips.Comment: 3 pages, 3 figures, to be published in Applied Physics Letters (2008