Study of the quench conditions in superconducting current limiters

A peculiarity of the operation of superconducting current limiters is that the resistance appearing in a superconductor influences the current in the circuit. Using an analytical approach, we analyze the conditions of the normal state formation and return into the superconducting state. The stability of equilibrium points is investigated as a function of the parameters of the circuit. It is shown that the superconductor stability is increased in comparison with the stability of a superconductor in the circuit of the current source. This allows one to use superconductors nonstabilized by normal metal to build current limiters and switches. It is demonstrated that using high-temperature superconductors the current limitation can be achieved even in the flux creep regime.

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