Magnetic breakdown in a normal-metal–superconductor proximity sandwich

Abstract

We study the magnetic response of a clean normal-metal slab of finite thickness in proximity with a bulk superconductor. We determine its free energy and identify two (meta)stable states, a diamagnetic one where the applied field is effectively screened, and a second state, where the field penetrates the normal-metal layer. We present a complete characterization of the first-order transition between the two states which occurs at the breakdown field Hb(T), including its spinodals, the jump in the magnetization, and the latent heat. The bistable regime terminates at a critical temperature Tcrit above which the sharp transition is replaced by a continuous crossover. We compare the theory with experiments on normal superconducting cylinders.

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