Abstract
The law of entropy increase postulates the existence of irreversible processes in physics: the total entropy of an isolated system can increase, but cannot decrease. The annihilation of an electric current in normal metal with the generation of Joule heat because of a non-zero resistance is a well-known example of an irreversible process. The persistent current, an undamped electric current observed in a superconductor, annihilates after the transition into the normal state. Therefore, this transition was considered as an irreversible thermodynamic process before 1933. However, if this transition is irreversible, then the Meissner effect discovered in 1933 is experimental evidence of a process reverse to the irreversible process. Belief in the law of entropy increase forced physicists to change their understanding of the superconducting transition, which is considered a phase transition after 1933. This change has resulted to the internal inconsistency of the conventional theory of superconductivity, which is created within the framework of reversible thermodynamics, but predicts Joule heating. The persistent current annihilates after the transition into the normal state with the generation of Joule heat and reappears during the return to the superconducting state according to this theory and contrary to the law of entropy increase. The success of the conventional theory of superconductivity forces us to consider the validity of belief in the law of entropy increase.
Highlights
The theory of superconductivity [1,2] is an outstanding achievement of twentiethcentury physics
The persistent current annihilates after the transition into the normal state with the generation of Joule heat and reappears during the return to the superconducting state according to this theory and contrary to the law of entropy increase
This theory considers the process of disappearance of the persistent current during the transition into the normal state in the same way as this process was considered before 1933: the persistent currents are damped with the generation of Joule heat
Summary
The theory of superconductivity [1,2] is an outstanding achievement of twentiethcentury physics. The conventional theory of superconductivity [1,2] does not explain how the persistent currents can be annihilated before the material gets resistance This theory considers the process of disappearance of the persistent current during the transition into the normal state in the same way as this process was considered before 1933: the persistent currents are damped with the generation of Joule heat. Contradicts the law of entropy increase since the appearance of the persistent current after the transition into the superconducting state is the process reverse to the irreversible thermodynamic process according to this theory. Hirsch ignores the obvious mistakes that physicists had to make after the discovery of the Meissner effect in order to maintain their faith in the law of entropy increase These mistakes will be considered in the Section 5. The urgency of an unbiased and open discussion of the possibility of violating the law of entropy increase is justified in the Section 6
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