Stability of thermal waves in helium-cooled superconducting cables

An analytical approach is presented for the determination of the propagation of thermal waves in helium cooled superconducting cables caused by a disturbance resulting in the energy deposition over a finite length of the conductor. The problem is reduced to the solution of an integral equation for the propagation of the thermal front. Sample calculations are presented to illustrate the effects of the strength of the initial energy deposition and the resulting Julian heating on the propagation of the thermal wave. (author)