Continuum electrodynamics of type-II superconductors in the mixed state: The dc and ac response

The de and ac response of the ideal type-II superconductor in the mixed state is analyzed in the frame of a continuum electrodynamics, in which all fields are averaged on a scale exceeding the intervortex distance. The results of previous calculations are brought together and compared, while paying special attention to the role of the vortex line tension and the normal current. The electromagnetic response is studied in the whole range of magnetic fields and frequencies. The possible effect of the normal current on vortex motion is discussed. We in this respect that existing theories, where the Lorentz force involves the normal current, are not consistent with Onsager relations. Due to vortex line tension the external fields penetrate into a superconductor as a superposition of two modes with different complex wave numbers (the two-mode electrodynamics). Obtained expressions for the surface impedance should permit one to determine the parameters of the theory from the experiment and to discriminate different models of vortex motion.