Short description:

The book offers a fresh look at electrodynamics of continuous media with detailed description of thermal and electromagnetic properties of superconductors, emphasising physical meaning of concepts and principles without excessive mathematics.

Long description:

Superconductivity is a remarkable, on the verge of miraculous, macroscopic quantum phenomenon with a boundless potential for a wide variety of applications. Over the last century the physics of superconductivity constitutes a major part of research in condensed matter and yet the electrodynamics of superconductors appears as only a minor part in textbooks on electrodynamics and superconductivity.

The book offers a fresh look at electrodynamics of continuous media with detailed description of thermal and electromagnetic properties of superconductors, emphasising physical meaning of concepts and principles without excessive mathematics. To facilitate understanding, it is accompanied by problems and worked solutions.

The book will be of interest to senior undergraduate and graduate students of physics and chemistry who have taken a calculus-based course in general physics. It is a valuable reference for researchers involved in studies of superconductivity, the physics of metals, and condensed matter physics.

The book errata is available under the Support Materials tab.

Key Features:

• The first book - in terms of semi-classical physics - addressing both equilibrium and nonequilibrium, thermal and transport properties of superconducting materials


• Presents an accessible overview without excessive mathematics


• Accompanied by problems with solutions to aid understanding

"Electrodynamics of Superconductors” by Vladimir Kozhevnikov will prove to be an excellent source for all students and researchers in the field of conventional and unconventional superconductivity. It represents a carefully documented description of the electromagnetic and thermodynamic properties of these fascinating materials. Incorporating both the early history and more recent developments of the field, the author presents an amusing and at times witty narrative of the fundamental concepts without overwhelming math. The prose and illustrations guide the reader through a robust account of the important issues surrounding the physics of continuous media and superconductors in particular. The book provides end-of-chapter problems and solutions, which enhance the learning of the topics and the understanding of the chapter’s narrative. Dr. Kozhevnikov has produced a comprehensive, detailed, entertaining, and inspiring book. It is intentional throughout in making the point that superconductivity can be understood semi-classically as a macroscopic phenomenon that follows from the Bohr-Sommerfeld quantization rule as applied to Cooper pairs. The model, introduced by the author in previous works, is the Micro-Whirls Model or MWM. It is developed in full in Chapter 5 and used to explain the phenomena associated with the “three zeroes” of superconductivity (i.e., resistance R, magnetic induction B, and entropy S). The fifth chapter is an exciting culmination of the remarkable work developed in the four previous chapters; together the five chapters comprise a must-have book. I wholeheartedly recommend the book to senior and graduate students interested in the physics of superconductivity.

- Oscar O. Bernal, Department of Physics and Astronomy, California State University (March 2025)

"After a quick survey of this book, I am impressed! I wish I had been able to read it while I was learning what little I know of the subject, back in the day...The coverage of normal electrodynamics helps set up the reader for the revolutionary revelations covered nicely in the history section, and only then does it start in on the theory of superconductivity. Most tomes on this subject dive right into the quantum mechanics of the latest HTSC models– trying to get ahead of the pack, as it were."

- Prof. Emeritus Jess H. Brewer, Deptartment of Physics & Astronomy University of British Columbia (March 2026)

Table of Contents:

Chapter 1: Magnetic Fields in Normal Media. Chapter 2: Gyromagnetic Ratio and Related Phenomena. Chapter 3: Superconductivity. History of Development. Chapter 4: Superconductivity. Thermodynamic Properties. Chapter 5: Superconductivity. Electrodynamics. Bibliography. Index.