Abstract
This paper describes a novel suspension technique using high-Tc superconductors and magnetic materials. For a field-cooled superconductor and an adjacent magnetic material, it has been found that the usual inverse relationship between the attractive magnetic force and gap distance switches to a direct relationship for small gap lengths under certain conditions. This phenomenon was found for even soft magnetic materials possessing a minimal coercive force. Thus, stable, noncontact suspension is possible within a certain gap range. When compared to a conventional superconductor-permanent magnet combination, both reduced cost and increased mechanical robustness can be expected since permanent magnets are not needed. Since remarkable switching in the force-gap relationship has been observed for magnetic materials with diameters much smaller than that of the effective pinned area, it was considered that the pinned flux is subject to a “gathering effect” in the magnetic material. Stable contactless suspension of a 180-g carbon steel weight under a superconductor has been performed previously. In continuing work, suspension of a 1.4-kg superconductor vehicle under a 1.8-m silicon steel rail was achieved by an extension of this technique.
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