On the Transition from Superconducting to Normal Phase, Accounting for Latent Heat and Eddy Currents

A rigorous solution is given for the superconducting transition of a semi-infinite slab held at a point below the critical temperature T
c
when a constant magnetic field above the critical value H
oc
is applied. The solution accounts for both the absorption of latent heat and the dissipation of eddy-current heat during the transition. A numerical example is calculated for the case of constants close to those of tantalum.