Introduction
What's
a superconductor?
Superconductors
have two outstanding features:
- Zero
electrical resistivity. This means that an electrical current in a
superconducting ring continues indefinitely until a force is applied to oppose
the current.
- The magnetic
field inside a bulk sample is zero (the Meissner
effect). When a magnetic field is applied current flows in the outer
skin of the material leading to an induced magnetic field that exactly opposes
the applied field. The material is strongly diamagnetic as a result. In this
experiment, a magnet floats above the surface of the superconductor
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