On the reversibitity of the Meissner effect and the angular momentum puzzle

Abstract

It is generally believed that the laws of thermodynamics govern superconductivity as an equilibrium state of matter. Here we point out that within the conventional BCS-London description of the normal-superconductor transition in the presence of a magnetic field, the transition cannot be reversible, in contradiction with the thermodynamic description and with experiments. This indicates that the conventional theory of superconductivity is internally inconsistent. We argue that to describe a reversible transition it is necessary to assume that charge transfer occurs across the normal-superconductor phase boundary, as proposed in the theory of hole superconductiviy. This provides also a solution to the angular momentum puzzle pointed out in previous work. Our explanation can only apply if the current carriers in the normal state are holes. An experimental test of these ideas is proposed.

References in corpus (4)

• Do superconductors violate Lenz's law? Body rotation under field cooling and theoretical implications
• The disappearing momentum of the supercurrent in the superconductor to normal phase transformation
• Dynamics of the normal-superconductor phase transition and the puzzle of the Meissner effect
• The Bohr superconductor

Cited by in corpus (16)

• Momentum of superconducting electrons and the explanation of the Meissner effect
• Inconsistency of the conventional theory of superconductivity
• The disappearing momentum of the supercurrent in the superconductor to normal phase transformation
• Entropy generation and momentum transfer in the superconductor-normal and normal-superconductor phase transformations and the consistency of the conventional theory of superconductivity
• Thermodynamic inconsistency of the conventional theory of superconductivity
• Superconducting materials: the w$hole$ story
• Defying inertia: how rotating superconductors generate magnetic fields
• Spinning superconductors and ferromagnets
• How Alfven's theorem explains the Meissner effect
• Alfven-like waves along normal-superconductor phase boundaries
• Towards an understanding of hole superconductivity
• Why only hole conductors can be superconductors
• The Meissner effect in superconductors: emergence versus reductionism
• On the dynamics of the Meissner and the Becker-London effects
• Corrigendum: "On the dynamics of the Meissner effect", arXiv:1508.03307, Phys. Scr. 91, 035801 (2016)
• Energy conservation and reversibility during thermodynamic changes of state in superconductors: Joule heat vs. magnetocaloric cooling