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39. Superconductivity

The Meisner effect; persistent currents; the Josephson effect. Several of the phenomena of superconductivity are observed in three experiments carried out in a liquid helium cryostat. The transition to the superconducting state of each of several bulk samples of Type I and II superconductors is observed in measurements of the exclusion of magnetic field (the Meisner effect) from samples as the temperature is gradually reduced by the flow of cold gas from boiling helium.

The persistence of a current induced in a superconducting cylinder of lead is demonstrated by measurements of its magnetic field over a period of a day. The tunneling of Cooper pairs through an insulating junction between two superconductors (the DC Josephson effect) is demonstrated, and the magnitude of the fluxoid is measured by observation of the effect of a magnetic field on the Josephson current.

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References (certificates required)

  1. [1935] F. London and H. London, "The Electromagnetic Equations of the Supraconductor", Reprinted from Proc. Roy. Soc., Vol. A149, pp. 71-88, (1935)
  2. [1954] H. E. Bommel,"Ultrasonic Attenuation in Superconducting Lead", Physical Review, Vol. 96, No. 1, October (1954).
  3. [1956] W. S. Corak, B. B. Goodman, C. B. Satterwaite, and A. Wexler, "Atomic Heats of Normal and Superconducting Vanadium", Physical Review, Vol. 102, No. 3, May (1956).
  4. [1957] J. Bardeen, L. N. Cooper, and J. R. Schrieffer, "Theory of Superconductivity", Physical Review, Vol. 108, No. 5, pp. 1175-1204, (1957).
  5. [1957] J. W. Crowe,"Trapped-Flux Superconducting Memory", Reprinted from IBM J. Res. Develop., Vol. 1, pp. 295-303, (1957).
  6. [1960] L. N. Cooper, "Theory of Superconductivity", American Journal of Physics, Feb, pp. 91-101, (1960)
  7. [1961] J.E. Kunzler, E. Buehler, F.S.L. Hsu, and J.H. Wernick,"Superconductivity of Nb3Sn at High Current Density in a Magnetic Field of 88 kGauss", Phys. Rev. Letts, 6, no.3, pp. 89-91, (1961).
  8. [1962] Nobel Prize Lecture for Lev Davidovic Landau <<for his pioneering theories for condensed matter, especially liquid helium>>
  9. [1964] D. M. Ginsberg, "Resource Letter Scy-1 on Superconductivity", American Journal of Physics, Vol. 32, No. 2, Feb (1964).
  10. [1964] Superconductivity: Selected Reprints, AIP
  11. [1965] R. P. Feynman, Feynman Lectures on Physics, (Reading, MA, Addison-Wesley, 1965), "A Seminar on Superconductivity", Vol III, Chap. 21.
  12. [1965] R. D. Parks, "Quantum Effects in Superconductors", Scientific American, Vol. 213, No. 4, pp. 57-67, October (1965).
  13. [1972] Nobel Lecture for John Bardeen, Leon N Cooper and J Robert Schrieffer <<for their jointly developed theory of superconductivity, usually called the BCS-theory>>
  14. [1973] J. Bardeen,"Electron-phonon interactions and superconductivity", Physics Today, Vol. 26, pp. 41-46, (1973)
  15. [1973] Nobel Lectures for Leo Esaki and Ivar Giaever <<for their experimental discoveries regarding tunneling phenomena in semiconductors and superconductors respectively>> and Brian D Josephson <<for his theoretical predictions of the properties of a supercurrent through a tunnel barrier, in particular those phenomena whichare generally known as Josephson effects>>
  16. [1973] L. N. Cooper, "Microscopic quantum interference in the theory of superconductivity", Physics Today, Vol. 26, pp. 31-39, July (1973).
  17. [1973] J. R. Schrieffer, "Macroscopic quantum phenomena from pairing in superconductors", Physics Today, Vol. 26, pp. 23-28, July (1973).
  18. [1975] Tinkham "Introduction to Superconductivity" (151 pages)
  19. [1986] Possible High Tc Superconductivity in the Ba-La-Cu-O SystemJ. Bednorz and K. Muller, Z. Phys. B - Condensed Matter 64, pp. 189-193

Josephson Effects

  1. [1963] Josephson, B.D., "Coupled Superconductors", pp. 216-220, Reviews of Modern Physics, Vol. 36, No. 1
  2. [1963] Observation of Josephson effect and Measurement of e/h in Adventures in Experimental Physics
  3. [1966] Langenberg, D.N., Scalapino, D.J., and Taylor, B.N., "The Josephson Effects", pp. 30-39, Scientific American, Vol. 214, No. 5, May (1966)
  4. [1968] Richards, P.L., Shapiro, S., and Grimes, C.C., "Student Laboratory Demonstration of Flux Quantization and the Josephson Effect in Superconductors", American Journal of Physics, pp. 690-697, Vol. 36, No. 8, August (1968)
  5. [1970] Clarke, J., "The Josephson Effect and e/h", pp. 1071-1092, American Journal of Physics, Vol. 38, No. 9, September (1970)
  6. [1970] Scalapino, D.J., "Josephson Effects" in Encyclopedia of Physics, Edited by Lerner and Trigg, pp. 479-481
  7. [1989] Bruynseraede, Y., Vlekken, C., and Van Haesendonck, C., "Giaever and Josephson Tunneling", NATO ASI Series, Vol. F59, Superconducting Electronics, Springer-Verlag (1989)

Selected Resources

  1. Spec Sheet for DT-470 and DT-471 Silicon Diodes (Lakeshore)
  2. Taconis Oscillations
  3. Model 1900 Temperature Indicator
  4. Probe I Si-diode (DT-470) calibration: Voltage and Temperature
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