Flux Pinning

Flux pinning is the phenomenon that magnetic flux lines cannot move (become trapped, or "pinned") despite the Lorentz force acting on them inside a current-carrying Type II superconductor. The phenomenon cannot occur in Type I superconductors, since these cannot be penetrated by magnetic fields (Meissner–Ochsenfeld effect). Flux pinning is only possible when there are defects in the crystalline structure of the superconductor (usually resulting from grain boundaries or impurities). The natural magnetic waves that bend around and pin the superconductor in mid space also break into millions of ultra-thin lines and each one carries a flux quantum caused from the superconductor being so sensitive to magnetic waves. These flux quanta also contribute to the cause of the bending of the magnetic waves around the superconductor and also the reason why the magnetic waves don’t pass through the conductor.