The break of shielding current at pulsed field magnetization of a superconducting annulus (experiment and model simulation)

During the pulsed field magnetization of a high-T c annulus in liquid nitrogen the shielding current drops abruptly, providing rapid penetration of the magnetic flux into the hole of the superconductor. After the break of current the trapped field in the hole is small and negative although the body of the annulus remains highly magnetized. In the present work the current breaking effect is investigated both experimentally and numerically. The influence of the pulse parameter on the shielding current evolution during the break is researched. A simple model for the qualitative description of this process is proposed. The model shows the development of heating localized on the inhomogeneity of the high-temperature superconductor annulus providing the formation of a high resistive channel with temperature near to T c. The appearance of this hot channel leads to the rapid reduction of the shielding current and presents a new scenario of flux jump at high temperature.