For practical applications of high-temperature superconductors (HTS) it is necessary for these conductors to be economically competitive with metal conductors based on copper and aluminum. One of the factors that have so far limited the commercialization of HTS on large scale is their relatively high ac losses when they are subjected to alternate currents and magnetic fields.

In order to be able to design and manufacture better superconducting wires and devices using them, it is necessary to have a better understanding of the ac loss mechanisms and of the internal distributions of magnetic field and current density.

HTS are characterized by a very non-linear current-voltage relation, which makes the computation of electromagnetic quantities not very simple. Finite-element (FE) simulations are a reliable technique to compute these quantities in detail not only in individual conductors, but also in complex devices where the electromagnetic interaction between the different components is very strong.

This website provides some examples of what is possible to simulate, with particular reference to cases of practical interest.

The development of these models is the results of collaboration between different  institutions:

1.    Ecole Polytechnique de Montréal (F. Sirois, F. Grilli)
   

2.    Los Alamos National Laboratory (S. Ashworth)
   

3.    CESI Ricerca (L. Martini, R. Brambilla)
   

4.    Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (B. Dutoit, F. Roy)
   

Contact information: Francesco Grilli - f.grilli@polymtl.ca