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 Thermodynamics of
Magnetizing Materials
and Superconductors
 Thermodynamics of
Magnetizing Materials
and Superconductors

Vladimir Kozhevnikov
CRC Press
Taylor & Francis Group
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Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742

c 2019 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

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International Standard Book Number-13: 978-1-138-49993-5 (Hardback)

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Kozhevnikov, Vladimir (Retired physics professor), author.

Title: Thermodynamics of magnetizing materials and superconductors / Vladimir
Kozhevnikov.
Description: Boca Raton, FL : CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, [2019] |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019007144| ISBN 9781138499935 (hbk ; alk. paper) |
ISBN 1138499935 (hbk ; alk. paper) | ISBN 9780429266478 (ebk) |
ISBN 0429266472 (ebk)
Subjects: LCSH: Magnetic fields. | Magnetic materials. | Superconductors. |
Thermodynamics.
Classification: LCC QC754.2.M3 K69 2019 | DDC 538/.3--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019007144

Visit the Taylor & Francis Web site at

http://www.taylorandfrancis.com

and the CRC Press Web site at

http://www.crcpress.com
 To the memory of my parents,
Klara Yakovlevna Grossman
and
Fedor Mikhailovich Kozhevnikov
Contents

Preface ix

List of Symbols xi

Introduction xv

Chapter 1  Elements of Magnetostatics in

Magnetizing Media 1

1.1 DIELECTRICS 2
1.2 CONDUCTORS 18
1.3 SUPERCONDUCTORS 19
1.3.1 Meissner state 19
1.3.2 Interphase surface energy 25
1.3.3 Type-I superconductors: Intermedi-
ate state 27
1.3.4 Type-II superconductors: Mixed state 30
1.3.5 Nucleation of superconductivity 34
1.4 PROBLEMS 37

Chapter 2  Thermodynamics of Para- and

Diamagnetics 51

2.1 WORK AND ENERGY IN MAGNETIC FIELD 51

vii
viii  Contents

2.2 THERMODYNAMICS OF SPECIMENS OF

CYLINDRICAL GEOMETRY 56
2.3 THERMODYNAMICS OF SPECIMENS OF
TRANSVERSE GEOMETRY 66
2.4 OTHER GEOMETRIES 71
2.5 PROBLEMS 73

Chapter 3  Thermodynamics of Superconductors 83

3.1 CONDENSATION ENERGY 83

3.2 TYPE-I SUPERCONDUCTORS 86
3.2.1 Cylindrical geometry 87
3.2.2 Other geometries: Model of Peierls
and London 92
3.2.3 Intermediate state in a flat slab:
Laminar model for the slab in tilted
field 97
3.3 TYPE-II SUPERCONDUCTORS: AVERAGED
MODEL OF THE MIXED STATE 108
3.4 PROBLEMS 115

Bibliography 123

Index 131
Preface

Historically, thermodynamics was formed as the science of

heat and temperature and the associated work and energy.
However, due to the electronic structure of matter and the
ubiquitous presence of a magnetic field, magnetic proper-
ties of material media are on an equal footing with their
heat counterparts. Nevertheless, thermodynamic properties
caused by the magnetic field are only scarcely addressed in
textbooks, as a short section or an appendix, which cannot
be sufficient for in-depth understanding of a far-from-trivial
subject of the magnetic properties. Moreover, the magnetic
properties considered in textbooks on thermodynamics, con-
densed matter physics and superconductivity are practically
always related (however, this is not always specified) to the
simplest geometry of a long cylindrical body in parallel field;
whereas in the majority of contemporary research and ap-
plications, a specimen/field configuration is close to what is
called transverse geometry: infinite plate in a perpendicular
field. The magnetic properties of bodies in a crucial man-
ner depend on the geometry of the body/field configuration,
which makes correct formulae for one geometry wrong for the
other. Unfortunately, this circumstance, indicated in the clas-
sical treatises by Maxwell, is practically ignored in the ma-
jority of modern textbooks. The suggested monograph aims
to reclaim this situation.
Each chapter of the book is accompanied by problems, so
it can be used as a supplemental textbook for courses on ther-
modynamics, electrodynamics, physics of condensed matter
and superconductivity. Respectively, the book is intended for
students and researchers specializing in the indicated areas

ix
x  Preface

of physics, as well as for anyone else interested in physics

of magnetism and superconductivity. In the latter case, it is
assumed that the reader is well familiar with the standard
course of general physics.
I am grateful to Andreas Suter, Vladimir Kresin, Mikhail
Raikh, Orest Symko and Dietrich Belitz for reading and com-
menting on the manuscript. Special thanks to Chris Van Hae-
sendonck without whom this book would never have been
written. Last but not least, I am indebted to my wife Yelena
Spivak for infinite patience and support at all stages of this
project.

Vladimir Kozhevnikov
May 2019
List of Symbols

A vector potential
B magnetic induction
B0 induction of the applied magnetic field
Bc induction of the thermodynamic critical field (used
in SI unit system)
BI induction of the applied field at the transition from
the Meissner state to the intermediate state in type-I super-
conductors (used in SI unit system)
Bn , Bt normal and tangential components of the mag-
netic induction, respectively
bk , b⊥ reduced parallel and perpendicular components
of the magnetic induction, respectively
C Curie constant
CH , CB heat capacities of a specimen at constant H
and B, respectively
Cs , Cn heat capacities of a specimen in superconduct-
ing and normal state, respectively
c speed of light
D period of a laminar flux structure
Dn , Ds width of the normal and superconducting lam-
inae, respectively
E electric field
e microscopic electric field
e electron charge
Ec condensation energy of a specimen
ec condensation energy density
ekin kinetic energy of electrons per unit volume
Em magnetic energy of a specimen

xi
xii  List of Symbols

F (T, V, B), Fb(T, V, H), Fe(T, V, H0 ) different forms of

a specimen free energy; F (T, V, H0 ) is a total free energy.
e
f (T, V, B), fb(T, V, H), fe(T, V, H0 ) different forms of
free energy density
f force acting on the unit area of an interface between
two media in the magnetic field
G(T, P ) Gibbs thermodynamic potential
gt (T, P ) density of the Gibbs thermodynamic potential
g linear density of a surface current
gc linear density of a conduction (transport) surface
current
H magnetic field intensity
H0 intensity of the applied magnetic field
h0k , h0⊥ parallel and perpendicular components of the
applied magnetic field intensity in reduced units
Hc thermodynamic critical magnetic field
Hc1 lower critical magnetic field
Hc2 upper critical magnetic field
Hc3 critical magnetic field of nucleation of supercon-
ductivity
Hcr critical magnetic field of transition from the super-
conducting to the normal state
Hd demagnetizing magnetic field
Hext external magnetic field near the specimen
HI magnetic field of the transition from the Meissner
state to the intermediate state
Hn , Ht normal and tangential components of the mag-
netic field intensity, respectively
h microscopic magnetic field
I magnetization
j mean bulk density of a current
jc , jb , jp mean bulk density of a conduction (transport),
bound and persistent currents, respectively.
kB Boltzmann constant
Lh healing length
Lm angular momentum of electrons in a single molecule
M magnetic moment of a specimen
 List of Symbols  xiii

Mm magnetic moment of a single molecule

m electron mass
n unit vector normal to the specimen surface
n number density
ns number density of superconducting electrons
nv vortex number density
o Larmor angular velocity
P pressure
Q latent heat
S entropy
Ss and Sn entropy of a specimen in superconducting
and normal state, respectively
Sm , Slat magnetic and lattice parts of entropy, respec-
tively
s entropy per unit volume of a specimen
T temperature
TD Debye temperature
Tc critical temperature of the superconducting transi-
tion
Tm kinetic energy of electrons in one molecule
t time
U internal energy of a specimen
u(s, B), u b(s, H), ue(s, H0 ) different forms of internal
energy density
V volume
vmic velocity of microscopic motion of electrons
W work

γ gyromagnetic ratio
δ domain-wall energy parameter
η demagnetizing factor
κ Ginzburg-Landau parameter
λ magnetic penetration depth
µ0 permeability of free space (constant of SI unit sys-
tem)
µ, µr magnetic permeability and relative magnetic per-
meability in cgs and SI unit systems, respectively
xiv  List of Symbols

µch chemical potential

ξ coherence length
ρ n , ρs volume fractions of the normal and supercon-
ducting components, respectively
σ surface density of electric charges
Φ magnetic flux
Φ0 superconducting magnetic flux quantum
χ, χ∗ magnetic susceptibility in cgs and SI unit systems,
respectively
ψ Ginzburg-Landau order parameter
Ψ magnetic scalar potential
Ω number of accessible states

Abbreviations
AMMS averaged model of the mixed state
e.m.f. electromotive force
GL Ginzburg-Landau (theory, parameter, etc.)
FC field cooled (specimen)
IS intermediate state
LMTF laminar model of the intermediate state in a
tilted field
MS mixed state
N normal state and phase
PL Peierls-London model
RRR residual resistivity ratio
S superconducting state and phase
ZFC zero-field cooled (specimen)
Introduction

Thermodynamics is a branch of physical science studying

macroscopic properties of systems of a large number of iden-
tical constituents, such as molecules, in an equilibrium state
also referred to as a state of thermodynamic equilibrium. This
is the state uniquely determined by a set of parameters called
parameters of state or thermodynamic variables. Therefore,
properties of the equilibrium state, referred to as thermody-
namic properties, do not depend on the system history, i.e.,
on the path by which the system was brought at its present
state. Examples of parameters of state include temperature,
volume, electric potential, and many others. Parameters of
state can be vector quantities. In such case, thermodynamic
properties can depend on the system (we will also use the
terms “body” and “specimen”) shape and on its orientation
with respect to these parameters. Examples of the vecto-
rial thermodynamic variables are static electric and magnetic
fields. In this book we will be concerned with the properties
caused by the latter.
Thermodynamics is based on the most solidly established
laws of nature: the law of energy conservation and the law of
maximal entropy of a macroscopic system in the equilibrium
state. For that reason, compliance with the laws of thermo-
dynamics is a necessary condition of validity of any physical
result whether it is theoretical or experimental. One of the
advantages of thermodynamics is that it allows one to pre-
dict and/or explain macroscopic properties of a system even
if microscopic processes underlying these properties are not
well understood.

xv
xvi  Introduction

Owing to the electronic structure of atoms, a specimen

of any material in the magnetic field possesses a magnetic
moment M (this and other quantities mentioned in this sec-
tion are defined later in the text). For a vast majority of
materials M is an induced property, implying that it van-
ishes in absence of an applied static or dc (direct current)
magnetic field H0 . The latter is the field set by the magnet
and hence controlled in the experiment; this is the field away
from the magnetized specimen or the field which would be
in a space occupied by the specimen if it is absent. Thermo-
dynamic properties of materials with an induced magnetic
moment, referred to as magnetizing and magnetizable ma-
terials, constitute a subject of this book. Thus, we will first
discuss properties of para- and diamagnetics (Ch. 2), whereas
properties of magnetic materials, i.e., materials possessing
spontaneous magnetization, such as ferromagnetics, will be
rarely mentioned1 .
We remind the reader that paramagnetic materials, or
simply paramagnetics, are materials whose induced magnetic
moment M is positive with respect to the vector H0 , i.e.,
M · H0 > 0. The reverse is always true for diamagnetics.
Normally, magnetism in magnetizing materials is fairly weak.
In particular, magnetic permeability µ only slightly differs
from unity: typically, it is 1 − O(−5) in diamagnetics and
1 + O(−4) in paramagnetics [1].
A hallmark of superconductivity phenomenon is a mag-
netic moment induced by an applied magnetic dc field. Of-
ten superconductors are referred to as perfect diamagnetics.
This is indeed true for specimens in the Meissner state, de-
fined as a state with a magnetic induction B = 0 over the
whole specimen volume. Therefore, it can be viewed as a state
with “perfect” diamagnetic permeability µ = 0. However, it
is not quite true for superconductors in other equilibrium
1
There are excellent accounts of properties of the magnetic materials,
e.g., “Ferromagnetism” by R. M. Bozorth, “The theory of Magnetism”
by D. C. Mattis, “Micromagnetics” by F. W. Brown, Jr., “Introduction
to Magnetism and Magnetic Materials” by D. Jiles, and other.
 Introduction  xvii

superconducting states, e.g., in the mixed state (MS) of type-

II superconductors or in the intermediate state (IS) of type-I
superconductors. The induction B in such states is inhomo-
geneous, and at constant temperature the specimens can be
considered as diamagnetics with a field-dependent average or
effective permeability 0 < µ < 1. Correspondingly, at a fixed
field µ in these states depends on temperature.
The magnetic moment induced in a pure, i.e., pinning
free, specimen of any (type-I or type-II) superconductor in
any superconducting state at given temperature and pressure
is uniquely determined by the applied field. Therefore, M in a
superconductor, like in the “normal” magnetizing materials,
is a thermodynamic property. One of the quantitative differ-
ences between conventional diamagnetics (such as bismuth,
one of the materials with which Faraday discovered the dia-
magnetism phenomenon [2]) and superconductors is that a
spatial scale of the induced circulating currents in the lat-
ter is much larger than that in the former. Correspondingly,
the induced magnetic moment in superconductors is much
greater (up to 5 orders of magnitude!) than that in normal
diamagnetic specimens of the same volume and shape. Pure
superconductors meet the definition of the magnetizing ma-
terials and therefore a large portion of this book (Chapter 3)
is devoted to thermodynamic properties of superconductors.
Apart from clarification of the physical meaning of some
notions and related mathematical formulae, the main motiva-
tion in writing this book is the fact that magnetic properties
of matter considered in most textbooks are related to prop-
erties of specimens of cylindrical geometry (long cylinders in
parallel field), whereas in the majority of contemporary ex-
periments and calculations the specimen/field configuration
is close to so-called transverse geometry, i.e., infinite plates
or slabs in a perpendicular field. Properties of specimens of
this geometry significantly (even drastically in case of su-
perconductors) differ from those of the cylindrical geometry.
Correspondingly, magnetic properties of specimens of non-
cylindrical geometries are the main focus of this book.
xviii  Introduction

In Chapter 1 we consider elements of magnetostatics of

the magnetizing materials and superconductors, necessary
for consequent discussion of their thermodynamic proper-
ties. The content of this chapter does not imply substitution
of textbooks on electrodynamics and superconductivity, so
many formulas are presented without derivations but with
emphasis on their physical meaning instead.
As a rule (unfortunately, it is not always possible) we use
capital characters for quantities related to an entire speci-
men and lowercase symbols for the quantities related to its
unit volume. By default, formulas are given in cgs units; all
(but most obvious) formulas in the text are duplicated in SI
units labeled (SI). Developed by Gauss with contributions of
Maxwell and Thomson (Lord Kelvin) the cgs unit system has
well-known advantages for electrodynamics stemming from
the same dimension of the electric and magnetic fields in
this system. Also, it is important that cgs units are used in
all classical treatises on electrodynamics and superconduc-
tivity. Therefore we believe that the use of cgs units will help
the reader to read original monographs and papers by great
physicists, which is always an extremely useful and enjoyable
experience2 .

2
An extended account of different aspects of systems of units is avail-
able in “Bible of Units” by N. Carron, arXiv:1506.01951 (2015).
 CHAPTER 1
Elements of
Magnetostatics in
Magnetizing Media

The magnetic moment and other magnetic properties of ma-

terials are caused by microscopic electric currents circulat-
ing inside them (recall that intrinsic magnetic moment of
electron associated with its spin angular momentum is also
attributed to circulating currents [3, 4]).
The magnetic moment (or dipole magnetic moment) of a
body is defined as [5, 6]
Z
1
M= (r × j)dV (1.1)
2c V
Z
1
M= (r × j)dV, (SI)
2 V

where r is the radius-vector from an origin somewhere inside

the body to a physically infinitesimal element1 of its volume
1
Following Lorentz, physically infinitesimal elements of volumes, sur-
faces and lines are called such elements which are much smaller than
macroscopic inhomogeneities, and at the same time much larger than
microscopic inhomogeneities of the medium and the field (in a condensed
matter those are of the order of molecular size).

1
2  Thermodynamics of Magnetizing Materials and Superconductors

dV in which the mean density of microscopic currents is j and

the integral is taken over the whole volume of the body V ;
and c is the electrodynamic constant of the cgs unit system
equal to speed of light. The mean current density j = envmic ,
where e, n and vmic are charge, number density and velocity
of microscopic motion of electrons, respectively.

1.1 DIELECTRICS
In insulators or dielectrics, electrons are bound to molecules.
Accordingly, microscopic currents are referred to as bound
currents. Denoting the mean density of these currents jb ,
Eq. (1.1) is rewritten as

Z Z
1
M= (r × jb )dV = IdV, (1.2)
2c V V

where we introduced magnetization I, which is magnetic mo-

ment density or the moment per unit volume.
As seen from (1.2), I is determined by the bound current
jb and therefore it should be possible to express jb in terms of
I. Indeed, as one can show (see, e.g., [3, 7, 8]), the relationship
between jb an I is

jb = c∇ × I (1.3)

jb = ∇ × I. (SI)

On first glance, Eq. (1.3) may look rather strange because

it yields zero bound current in uniformly magnetized bodies.
But if it is so, then, according to (1.2), the magnetic mo-
ment of such bodies and hence magnetization are zero as
well! Oddly enough, jb in these bodies is indeed zero but M
and I are not. Let us see how it happens.
The bound current in Eq. (1.3) is the average of micro-
scopic currents in the volume element dV of the specimen
bulk, which in case of uniform magnetization must be zero
 Elements of Magnetostatics in Magnetizing Media  3

due to symmetry. However, any body possesses a surface near

which magnetization abruptly (over a length of the order of
a radius of circulating currents) changes either down to zero,
if the body is in free space (vacuum), or to another value, if
the body is submerged in some medium. This near-surface
change of magnetization results in appearance of a surface
current. Note the peculiar type of this current: it is formed
by electrons bound to molecules and therefore there is no
real charges traveling along the surface. However, it is easy
to show (see, e.g., [3]) that the magnetic moment produced
by this current is exactly the same as that caused by a con-
tinuous current running along the surface.
The surface current is characterized by its linear density
g, defined as a current per unit length of the body boundary
perpendicular to the current. The vector g (see, e.g., [3, 8]
for derivation) is
c
g = c(I1 − I2 ) × n = (B1 − B2 ) × n (1.4)
4π

1
g = (I1 − I2 ) × n = (B1 − B2 ) × n, (SI),
µ0

where I1 and B1 are magnetization and induction (definition

of B is given below) at inner side of the body boundary, re-
spectively; I2 and B2 are the same quantities at the outer
side (in surrounding medium); n is a unit vector perpendicu-
lar to the surface and directed outward and µ0 is a constant
of the SI unit system equal 4π · 10−7 N/A2 and referred to as
permeability of free space. The last expression in (1.4) fol-
lows from the fact that g is parallel to the surface since the
bound current can never run through (perpendicular to) it.
The first part of Eq. (1.2) accounts only for the bulk
bound current jb . Therefore, it is incomplete and should be
supplemented by a term reflecting the near-boundary change
of magnetization. On the other hand, the second part of
Eq. (1.2) is completely correct because the total magnetic
4  Thermodynamics of Magnetizing Materials and Superconductors

moment of a body can always be presented as a sum of mag-

netic moments of its volume elements dM = IdV , which in
magnetizing materials are always parallel to each other.
Following Faraday, the magnetic field inside matter is
called magnetic induction or magnetic flux density and is de-
noted by B. This is an average value of the microscopic mag-
netic fields h obeying the Maxwell equations for free space
[9]. Like magnetization, at steady-state conditions the induc-
tion is also an equilibrium property of magnetizing materials.
As it was pointed out already by Faraday (see [10]), B is the
field available for measurements. At the time of Faraday and
Maxwell, one could only speculate about measuring the field
inside materials. Nowadays it can be indeed measured, e.g.,
by means of muon spin rotation (µSR) spectroscopy.
The Maxwell equations for h are

∇·h=0 (1.5)

and
1 ∂e 4π
∇×h= + envmic (1.6)
c ∂t c

1 ∂e
∇×h= + µ0 envmic (SI),
c2 ∂t
where e is a microscopic electric field (not to be confused
with the electron charge e).
Upon averaging, the term with the time derivative in (1.6)
vanishes because the mean electric field e is assumed absent.
On the other hand, the average microscopic current density in
non-conducting media is jb ≡ envmic = c∇×I (see Eq. (1.3)).
Therefore, Eqs. (1.5) and (1.6), after averaging, become

∇·B=0 (1.7)

and

∇ × B = 4π∇ × I (1.8)
 Elements of Magnetostatics in Magnetizing Media  5

∇ × B = µ0 ∇ × I. (SI)

Introducing

H ≡ B − 4πI, (1.9)

B
H≡ − I, (SI)
µ0
we rewrite Eq. (1.8) as

∇ × H = 0. (1.10)

H is another equilibrium characteristic of the magnetic

field in a matter referred to as magnetic and magnetizing
force [2, 10], magnetic field intensity [3], magnetic field [7],
auxiliary field [8], thermodynamic field [11], Maxwell field
[12], H-field [13], and others.
As seen from (1.10), in non-conducting media (or, in gen-
eral, in absence of a transport current) curl H is zero due to
definition of H (1.9). Therefore, in such media, H represents
a potential (vortex-free) field [3] which can be written as

H = −∇Ψ, (1.11)

where Ψ is the magnetic scalar potential obeying the Laplace

equation

∇2 Ψ = 0.

This kind of description of the magnetic field is used in

the Poisson theory of magnetism based on Coulomb law for
so-called magnetic charges or monopoles [14, 10]. Eq. (1.10)
justifies the validity of the formulae obtained from the notion
of the scalar potential in this (physically inconsistent) the-
ory. It should be stressed that curl of the genuine magnetic
field (Eq.(1.6)) is not zero, meaning that h and hence B is a
solenoidal (vortex) field, consistently describing by a vector
potential A defined as

∇ × A = B. (1.12)
6  Thermodynamics of Magnetizing Materials and Superconductors

In the Gaussian or cgs unit system H has the same

dimension as B ([Length]−1/2 × [M ass]1/2 × [T ime]−1 =
cm−1/2 g 1/2 s−1 ). However the units of B and H carry dif-
ferent names: gauss (G) and oersted (Oe), respectively. In
the SI system, B and H have both different dimensions
([M ass] × [T ime]−2 × [Current] = kg · s−2 A and [Current] ×
[Length]−1 = A/m, respectively) and names (tesla (T ) for B
and no name for H).
These and other issues related to unit system and termi-
nology can lead to the impression that B and H are different
magnetic fields simultaneously existing inside materials. Ac-
tually, however, these are different characteristics of a single
concept of the magnetic field used for description of the mag-
netism phenomenon in classical electrodynamics. It is well
seen, for instance, from the fact, that in order to calculate
the work δW needed for an infinitesimal change of the induc-
tion δB in a volume VF occupied by the field, one needs to
know the field intensity H in this volume [15]:
Z
1
δW = H δB dV (1.13)
4π VF

Z
δW = H δB dV (SI).
VF

Therefore the knowledge of both the B and H fields is

evenly important for describing magnetic properties of ma-
terials. In free space outside of any specimen (where I = 0,
but the field can be different from H0 due to magnetic mo-
ment of the specimen) B and H are identical (or differ by a
constant factor µ0 in SI units). Correspondingly, away from
the specimen, where the field due to the magnetized speci-
men vanishes, B = H = H0 . Inside the specimen B and/or
H differ from H0 and must be carefully distinguished from
each other [10]. It is important that, apart from dependence
on the specimen material, the differences between B, H and
H0 depend on the specimen geometry and on the orientation
 Elements of Magnetostatics in Magnetizing Media  7

of the applied field. For instance, if the specimen is an in-

finite slab in parallel field H0 , then everywhere outside this
specimen B = H = H0 ; inside the slab H remains the same
as H0 , but B is different: in paramagnetics B > H0 and in
diamagnetics B < H0 . However, if H0 is perpendicular to the
same slab, then B = H0 and H < H0 in paramagnetics and
H > H0 in diamagnetics. Below we will consider this issue in
more details.
To complete the system of equations (1.7) and (1.10),
these equations must be supplemented by a relationship be-
tween and by boundary conditions for the B and H fields.
In many magnetizing materials (see, e.g., [16] for details)
B and H are linearly related, i.e.,

B = µH, (1.14)

where µ is already mentioned magnetic permeability defined

by this formula; µ is intrinsic property of the magnetizing
materials (excluding superconductors). In cgs system µ is
dimensionless quantity; in SI system Eq. (1.14) is rewritten as

B = µr µ0 H, (SI)

where µr is the same as µ in cgs system and is referred to

as relative magnetic permeability. Materials with the field
independent µ are called linear magnetizing materials.
Another intrinsic property, referred to as (bulk) mag-
netic susceptibility or coefficient of induced magnetization
(per unit volume) χ = (µ − 1)/4π, is defined by

I = χH. (1.15)

In SI units the magnetic susceptibility is χ∗ ≡ I/H =

µr − 1.
Hence, in paramagnetics χ is positive and it is negative
in diamagnetics.
Apart from that, in paramagnetics χ depends on temper-
ature. In many paramagnetics χ is inversely proportional to
8  Thermodynamics of Magnetizing Materials and Superconductors

T (Curie Law) and therefore the magnetic part of the spec-

imen entropy Sm (entropy caused by disorder in orientation
of molecular magnetic moments) decreases with decreasing
temperature (the lower temperature, the less disorder in the
ordering of molecular moments in the magnetic field). This
leads to so-called magnetocaloric effect, i.e., to heat release
at magnetization and heat absorption at demagnetization of
paramagnetics. The magnetocaloric effect is used to achieve
very low temperatures and in other applications [17, 18]. This
effect is considered in problems 2.8-2.10 after Chapter 2.
Contrarily, in diamagnetics χ is temperature indepen-
dent2 . This means that the induced molecular magnetic mo-
ments in diamagnetics are completely ordered and therefore
Sm = 0.
Calculation of χ is one of the main tasks of condensed
matter and molecular physics [21, 20]. Note, that although
classical Langevin theory and quantum mechanics yield sim-
ilar formulas for χ in dia- and paramagnetics, rigorous ap-
plication of the classical theory yields χ = 0 [19], indicating
that magnetization is a quantum phenomenon [20, 21, 22].
It is worth noting that according to (1.15) I is propor-
tional to H, but not to the average microscopic field B. His-
torically, definition (1.15) appeared in the Poisson theory and
it remains in force in the classical Faraday-Maxwell theory
[10, 7]. That the field in (1.15) may not be B can be seen
from the fact that magnetization is caused by interaction of
molecular currents with an average magnetic field acting on
each molecule from its neighbors. The latter apparently does
not include the field from the molecule itself, whereas the
induction B does include it.
There are different opinions about what field should be
used in (1.15) (see, e.g., [3, 13, 20]). The problem is that H
is an unmeasurable quantity because any probe (including
muons in µSR) measures average field in its vicinity (pro-
vided that distortion of the field by the probe is negligible),
2
it is not always so in superconductors.
 Elements of Magnetostatics in Magnetizing Media  9

which is B by definition. And also, in normal materials µ

differs very little from unity. Therefore, difference between
B and H in these materials is mostly of academic interest.
However, in superconductors (a) in the Meissner state (where
B = 0, but H 6= 0) the concept of the magnetic permeability
makes sense only if I is proportional to H, and (b) in the
intermediate and mixed superconducting states, where the
specimens are split for domains of the normal and supercon-
ducting phases, H throughout a specimen equals to B (or
B/µ0 in SI units) in the normal domains and the latter can
be and was measured. Results of these measurements support
the classical definition of χ given by (1.15). We will briefly
consider these results later.
Boundary condition for the normal component of the in-
duction Bn follows from always valid Eq. (1.7) stemming from
the absence of magnetic monopoles. It yields (see, e.g., [7, 6]
for derivation)

Bn1 = Bn2 , (1.16)

where indexes 1 and 2 refer to the induction on the inner and

outer sides of the body boundary, respectively.
The condition (1.16) implies that lines of the induction
are endless (no beginning, no end) continuous lines. Most
often the induction lines form closed loops about currents,
which include the lines coming from and leaving to infinity.
Note that, at definite combinations of the currents, the B-
lines may be infinite but located in a confined space, e.g.,
they can make an endless toroidal helix (see [3] for details)3 .
Another important content of Eq. (1.16) is that it reflexes
the law of the magnetic flux conservation, stating that the
magnetic flux (flux of the induction B) passing through any
closed surface is always zero. In other words, the magnetic
3
Such a current combination is used in a tokamak, which is the first
and, as of today, the most perspective project of a fusion reactor em-
ployed, in particular, in the International Thermonuclear Experimen-
tal Reactor (ITER). The tokomak was conceptually developed by Igor
Tamm and his former PhD student Andrei Sakharov.
10  Thermodynamics of Magnetizing Materials and Superconductors

flux entering a closed volume (for example, a specimen) is

equal to the flux exiting from it.
In its turn, Eq. (1.10) yields the boundary condition for
the tangential (parallel to the surface) component Ht , which
is (see, e.g., [3, 6] for derivation)
Ht1 = Ht2 , (1.17)
where meaning of indexes 1 and 2 is the same as that
in (1.16).
It is important to underscore that condition (1.17) follows
from Eq. (1.10) and therefore it is valid in the absence of the
transport or conduction current. The surface current made by
circulating microscopic currents does not alter the condition
(1.17) since these currents are always compensated. More-
over, even in the presence of the transport current Eq. (1.17)
holds provided that the bulk density of this current jc (see
Eq. (1.34) below) is finite. However, if the transport current
is concentrated in a very thin layer at the boundary (for ex-
ample, the current in a solenoid made of a thin wire wound
on a cylindrical specimen, see problems 1.4 and 1.5), then
the condition (1.17) takes the form [3, 6]
4π
(H1 − H2 ) × n = g (1.17a)
c c

(H1 − H2 ) × n = gc , (SI)
or in the scalar form
4π
Ht1 − Ht2 = gc
c

Ht1 − Ht2 = gc , (SI)

where gc is the linear density of the surface transport current 4
running in direction perpendicular to Ht .
4
In a multiple connected superconducting specimen gc can be a per-
sistent current encircling an opening with a trapped magnetic flux.
Another random document with
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The Project Gutenberg eBook of Outside Saturn
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States
and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no
restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it
under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this
ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the
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you are located before using this eBook.

Title: Outside Saturn

Author: Robert E. Gilbert

Illustrator: Richard Kluga

Release date: October 5, 2023 [eBook #71815]

Language: English

Original publication: New York, NY: Royal Publications, Inc, 1957

Credits: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed

Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OUTSIDE

SATURN ***
 OUTSIDE SATURN

By ROBERT ERNEST GILBERT

Illustrated by RICHARD KLUGA

Gangsters were out of date, and the ice-sweeper

was an unlikely thing to steal. But Vicenzo
was a streak, so what else could Henry do?

[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from

Infinity January 1958.
Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that
the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]
 CHAPTER I
Aziz ripped the radio from Henry's spacesuit and carefully resealed
the panel. "Dis'll be the weldin' of ya, kid," Aziz said, crinkling his
round, sallow face in an attempt to smile. "Yer name'll be in ever' yap
—in our orbit, dat is."
"But what—" Henry tried to say.
"No doubt at all," Vicenzo agreed, cleverly shorting Henry's drive
tube.
"I don't—" Henry said.
"Vicenzo figured it right, kid," Aziz said. He gestured with powerful
arms too long for his short body. "Ya'll hit dat ole sweeper square on
the bulb. Vicenzo's a streak."
"I'm a genius," Vicenzo admitted. He smoothed the black bangs
covering his forehead to the eyebrows, and he fingered the pointed
sideburns reaching to his chin. "You jump into space, Henry, and
then we'll increase velocity and sink into the Rings."
Aziz begged, "Do us a blazer, kid. We won't go far. Too low on fuel."
He lowered the helmet over Henry's bushy, blond hair and ruddy
face and clamped it shut.
Vicenzo and Aziz left Henry in the airvalve and closed the inner door.
When the valve emptied to vacuum, Henry reluctantly lowered the
outer door and stepped to the magnetized platform.
Henry stood twenty meters above Ring B of the Rings of Saturn.
Below him, balls of ice, metal, rock, and assorted cosmic debris
flowed slowly past with stars occasionally visible between the
whirling particles. To either side, the billions of tiny moons blended
with distance to form a solid, glaring white band. Henry bent his
knees and dived into space.
Holding his body stiff with a practiced rigidity, and cautiously moving
arms and legs to check any tendency to tumble, Henry glided above
the Rings. Turning his head, he saw exhaust spurt from the
collection of spherical cabins, tanks, and motors that was the
spaceship; and the craft moved from his line of sight, leaving him
alone.
Henry drifted above a flat surface more than sixty-six thousand
kilometers wide. To his left, Ring B extended to the black circle of the
Cassini Division which separated it from the less brilliant Ring A. To
his right, the gleam of Ring B abruptly changed to the dimness of the
Crape Ring through which the surface of Saturn was visible. Of the
giant planet, forty-three thousand kilometers away, Henry saw but
half a crescent marked with vague white and yellow bands and
obscure spots.
Red and green lights blinked ahead. Most of the approaching ice-
sweeper was shadowed and invisible against the blackness of
space. Henry saw no lighted windows, but he experimentally aimed
his signal torch at a dome on top of the space station.
Moving with the exact velocity of the Ring, the sweeper, a bundle of
huge cylindrical tanks bound together with fragile girders, apparently
grew larger. A rectangular snout, swinging from side to side and
probing into the Ring, dangled below the front of the sweeper.
Dancing in mutual gravitational attraction, the tiny moons constantly
closed the open lane behind the snout.
Henry blinked his torch and saw its red reflection in the sweeper's
observation dome, but no one answered the signal. Gaudy with
lights, the station drifted past below Henry's level and nearly one
hundred meters away.

Henry struggled futilely in his suit and tumbled through space. He

saw the flaming arch of the Milky Way and then the immense
shadow of Saturn stretching black across the Rings. Somewhere,
the bright exhaust of a distant spaceship streaked across the stars.
By missing the ice-sweeper, he would continue on a spiral course
down toward Saturn, until he at last fell into the methane; or, if his
falling body accelerated enough, he might establish an orbit closer to
the planet and revolve around it, until he died of thirst. Vicenzo and
Aziz would never find him and would probably not search long.
Fire shot past Henry's gyrating figure. A thin cable followed the small
rocket. Henry's flailing arms struck the cable, and his gauntleted
hands gripped the strands. He pulled back the spent rocket, and the
missile's magnetic head clanked against his spacesuit. The lifeline
reeled him toward the station.
A hairless, brown, deeply wrinkled face watched Henry from a small
window beside an open airvalve. The cable pulled Henry to the
muzzle of a rocket launcher. He jerked the magnetic head loose and
shut himself into the valve. He slid the inner door open and, weakly
kicking his legs, floated on his back into the sweeper.
An old man, the owner of the wrinkled face, stopped Henry from
drifting into the far wall of the cramped compartment. The old man
wore shorts and a sleeveless shirt, and his shrunken limbs seemed
to have no muscles. He drew Henry down to the magnetized deck
and removed the space helmet.
"You're just a boy!" the man wheezed in a cracked voice. "Where'd
you come from, boy?"
Henry, watching through half-closed eyes, almost said that he was
twenty years old. Then he remembered to mutter, "Water."
The old man said, "How'd you get out here? There's been no ships in
days. What are you doing here all by yourself? I almost missed you.
You'd been on a bad course if I had. Just happened to see your torch
twirling around out there. Ain't many people can come that close with
a life rocket and not hit a fellow. For a second, I thought the rocket
was going to bust you. Of course, being skillful the way I am, it didn't
seem likely, but I—"
"Water," Henry moaned.
"Water? Why sure. How long you been drifting, boy? Must be mighty
thirsty. What's your name? I'm Ranjit. I've never got used to people
not telling their last names. Of course, even when I was your age,
most people called each other by their first names. I can't hardly
remember what my last name is. You might not think it to look at me,
but I'm 107 years old. Here, let's get you out of that suit and see
what kind of shape you're in."
Horizontal and vertical wrinkles formed ragged crosshatching on
Ranjit's forehead. His nose and ears were large and grotesque with
age. He unsealed the spacesuit at the waist and, holding Henry
against the deck with one hand, pulled off the top section.
"Water!" Henry gasped. Peeping secretly, he saw that the teletype,
near the airvalve, was dismantled, with the parts tied in bunches
floating over the empty case. He located the radio above an
aluminum desk in the far corner. He could see no visular set
anywhere.
Ranjit dragged off the lower section of the suit, leaving Henry
resplendent in orange knickers and red blouse. "How do you feel?"
Ranjit asked. "What ship are you from? I don't see how they could
just leave you. I'd better report this. They must be looking for you.
Funny I haven't heard about it. Of course, the teletype's out of
whack. I'm fixing it. I'm handy that way, fixing things. The heater
broke down the other day, but I've got it going good now. I've started
melting ice again. The tanks were about empty after that last ship
fueled up. The Asteroid Ann, it was, or was it the Mimas Mae?
They've both been by lately, but—"
"Water!" Henry pleaded. He had to do something to make Ranjit
leave the compartment. He tried to listen for sounds that would
locate the other crew members. Holding his handsome blond head in
his hands, he sat up. The movement lifted his body from the deck,
leaving his metal-soled shoes attached, so that he sat in mid-air.
"Water?" said Ranjit. "If there's one thing I've got, it's water. Let me
see, there must be a flask someplace." He rummaged in the netting
that covered two opposite walls of the compartment and secured an
incredible clutter of weightless tools, books, food cases, clothing,
oxygen tanks, spacesuit parts, wire, tubing, and other items. Still
talking, Ranjit vanished through an opening almost concealed by the
net.

Henry leaped to the radio. He whipped a pair of insulated snips from

his pocket and cut through the electric cord in four places. He thrust
the severed pieces behind the desk and stood listening. Somewhere,
Ranjit continued talking, but Henry heard no answering voices. The
only other sounds were the whine of electric motors and the throb of
pumps. Henry pulled out a screwdriver and paused as he noticed a
sign above the desk. The sign said:

AAAAAAA CCCCC D EEEEE

G H IIIIH LLLL MM NNNNNNNNN
OO PP Q RR S TTTTT UUUUU
Shaking his head, Henry released the clamps, turned the radio, pried
off the back, and stabbed and slashed at the interior with the
screwdriver. He replaced the back and returned to his position on the
deck just in time.
"—really should," Ranjit continued, walking through the door. "You're
lucky I saw you at all. Of course, I'm watchful all the time. Would you
believe I've been right here on this sweeper for nine years? Here's
some water, boy."
Henry squirted water from the flexible flask into his mouth. Ranjit
said, "You ain't as thirsty as I thought you was. How come you wasn't
calling for help?"
"No radio," Henry mumbled. "The drive tube wouldn't work either."
"What were you doing in a bunged-up suit like that? You'll never live
to be as old as me if you take such chances. If this station had
visular, I'd have picked you up in that, but the company said I
wouldn't have no use for it."
"Where is everybody?" Henry asked, pushing himself unsteadily to
his feet.
"Everybody who? Are you hungry? How long since you had anything
to eat? There's nobody here but me. Karoly and Wilbur both passed
beyond, Wilbur just two weeks ago. He was only 94 too. The
company's sending some help, they say. I don't see how they expect
one man to run an ice-sweeper, even if he is handy like me. This is a
dangerous job, although you might not think so. Do you realize,
young fellow, we're whizzing around Saturn once every nine hours,
four minutes, and twelve seconds? That's an orbital velocity of
nineteen point eight kilometers per second! We've got to go that fast
to stay in this orbit."
"There's no one else here but you?" Henry said.
"Think what would happen if something slowed us down!" Ranjit
exclaimed. "We'd start falling toward Saturn and finally crash!
Meteors are scarce out here, but what if a spaceship came around
retrograde and smashed this station head-on? There ain't a thing I
can do if it starts falling. Part of it's a ship, but the company took the
motor out. All I've got is the flywheel steering gear. The control
room's right up there above my bunk."
Ranjit pointed to a sandwich bunk hoisted against the pipes and
conduits that crisscrossed the ceiling in abstract patterns. He said, "I
can spin this sweeper like a top, if I want to, but I can't accelerate it."
He squinted through the small window beside the airvalve.
"Speaking of spaceships," he rambled, "there's one out there now.
Wonder who it is? There's not a thing on the schedule. Looks like
they would've called in."
Moving to the radio, the old man fumbled with knobs and switches
and pounded on the cabinet with his fist. "This radio's deader than a
asteroid!" he yelled. "First the teletype and now the radio. I'm
supposed to report all ships to Titan, but how can I with no
equipment? Maybe that's your ship come hunting you. What did you
say your name is?"
"Henry," said Henry.
"Henry, huh? My name's Ranjit. I better get up to the big valve. That
ship'll be clinching in a minute."
"What does that sign mean?" said Henry, seizing the old man's bony
wrist.
"Sign? Oh, there over the desk? I just put that there to confuse
people. It's a puzzle that spells out something in an old-time
language, Latin maybe. Christian Huygens published that way back
in 1655. He used a puzzle while he was checking some more. He
was the first man to figure out what was around Saturn. It means
something like, 'There's a flat ring that's inclined to the ecliptic that
circles the planet without touching it.' Well, let go of me. I've got to
see about that ship."
"Just stay here and be calm, Ranjit," Henry said.
"What?"
"Be good, and you won't get hurt."
"Get hurt? What are you talking about, Henry? That's no way to talk
to a fellow that saved your life. If it hadn't been for me, you'd still be
falling. You were slower than the sweeper. I saved your life!"
Henry blushed in sudden shame and released Ranjit's arm. "Why,
why, I—I guess you did!" he stammered.
Henry lived in an era that had been preceded by wars which
destroyed more than half the people of Earth. It was a time of rigidly
controlled population, highly specialized training, and constantly
increasing life expectancy. Each human life was considered a
distinct and invaluable thing. Since the end of the final war, the
Crime War, seventy years before, murder had become an obscene
and almost meaningless word, and natural death was rarely
mentioned. Saving another person's life was considered the most
magnificent act that anyone could perform, and almost the only way
to become a public hero, since actors, entertainers, policemen, and
officials were thought to be no better than anyone else.
"I'm—I'm sorry," Henry said, blushing until he perspired. "I'm all
mixed up."
"That's all right, Henry. You were out there a long time."
Something struck twice against the hull of the ice-sweeper. "There's
a clumsy pilot!" Ranjit yelled. "I better go see what he's trying to do."
"Wait," Henry said, grabbing the old man's arm again. "I—" He
stopped speaking and frowned in confusion. When he considered
recent events, he realized that Vicenzo and Aziz, by their inexpert
maneuvering, had almost caused him to pass beyond. All of Henry's
education, haphazard as it had been, emphasized the belief that a
person who caused another to pass beyond could only be regarded
with loathing. A person who saved a life must be treated with eternal
gratitude and veneration by the beneficiary.
Ranjit said, "Let's go, Henry! What are you up to? I've had a feeling
you ain't exactly zeroed."
"I—I think I should tell you," Henry said.
"Listen. Somebody coming aboard," Ranjit said, jerking his arm from
Henry's relaxed grip and facing the doorway in the netting. Henry
waited for Vicenzo and Aziz to enter the compartment.

CHAPTER II
Two people entered, but they were not Vicenzo and Aziz. The first
was a small, thin man with a long, sad face. He wore a somber black
oversuit. The second was a girl no older than Henry.
"Please, Joachim," the girl whispered, "don't antagonize them. Ask
about the fuel first."
Henry gaped at the girl, and his face grew hot. Since he had spent
his young life among the Moons and Asteroids, never going farther
sunward than Pallas, he had seen few girls his own age and none as
beautiful as this one. Her hair, dyed in tiger stripes of black and
yellow, was parted in the middle and, held by silver wires, extended
from the sides of her head like wings. She wore blue hose, silver fur
shorts, and a golden sweater sparkling with designs in mirror thread.
Metal-soled shoes too large for her feet slightly marred the total
effect.
"High," said the man with the sad face. "I am Joachim, Second Vice-
President of the SPRS. This is our Corresponding Secretary, Morna."
His deep voice rolled around the compartment as if the lower keys of
an orchestrana had been struck.
"Low," Ranjit responded. "I'm Ranjit, and this is Henry. Why didn't
you make an appointment? The tanks are about empty, and you may
have to wait several hours. What do you feed your atomics, water or
hydrogen? It'll be even longer if you need hydrogen. I haven't done
any electrolysis today. I wasn't expecting—Look at that girl, Henry!
I'm 107 years old, but I can still appreciate a sight like that! I don't
see how a homely fellow like you, Joachim, ever got such a luscious
girl."
"Ours is strictly a business relationship," said Morna with indignant
formality. "We do need fuel, Ranjit. We planned to refuel on Dione,
but the moon was not where Joachim thought it should be. If—"
"Later, Morna," Joachim interrupted in a hollow voice. "I have come
thirteen hundred million kilometers on a mission, and I intend to fulfill
it! I represent the SPRS. We have written to you, Ranjit, but you
have never answered."
Ranjit said, "The SPRS? Oh, yeah, you're the ones are always
sending me spacemail. It's about all I ever get, and I appreciate it. I
don't get much mail, out here, and I don't see many people. This
fellow here, Henry, was the first I'd seen in days. I saved Henry's life,
or did he tell you?"
"How wonderful!" Morna exclaimed in awe. "I've never spoken to a
Saver before! Think of it, Joachim! Ranjit saved Henry!"
"That is very nice," Joachim admitted, "but—"
"You're a hero!" Morna cried, seizing Ranjit's hands. "How does it
feel to be a Saver? It must be sublime!" She turned to Henry and
grasped his arms. "How do you feel, Henry? You must almost
worship Ranjit! Such a noble man!"
Ranjit cackled. "Look at him blush! I don't believe he's been around
girls much. Since Joachim don't have no claim on her, Henry, I'd do
some sweet talking if I was your age. I pulled Henry in on a lifeline,
or he'd be falling into the methane by now."
"Isn't that wonderful?" Morna marveled, smiling glamorously.
Joachim said, "Everyone be quiet and allow me to finish! I have
come thirteen hundred million kilometers on a mission, and I intend
to fulfill it! I am Second Vice-President of the Society for the
Preservation of the Rings of Saturn. You, Ranjit, and the people on
the other three stations in the Rings are destroying the most glorious
and inspiring feature of the Solar System! The divine pinnacle of
Creation! A miracle that may be unique in the Universe! You are
destroying the Rings of Saturn for the greedy, selfish purpose of
selling fuel to spaceships!"
"Spaceships got to have fuel," Ranjit said, "and don't talk so loud. Ice
is scarce, you know, unless you want to chase comets. One side of
Iapetus has a sheet, and Titan has some. If you go on in, you'll find a
little on some of the Moons of Jupiter, and a few of the Asteroids are
—"
Joachim said, "You are destroying the Rings of Saturn! This is the
most despicable crime in a long history of the devastation of nature
by greedy men! When you have eventually melted the last crystal of
ice and departed with your hoard, Saturn will spin desolately alone
through the night, shorn of his glorious halo that has been the solace
and inspiration of man since prehistoric times!"
"Not when they never had telescopes, it wasn't very inspiring," Ranjit
said. "I don't see why you're jumping on me, Joachim. I never
answered your letters because there wasn't nothing to say. I just
work here. You'll have to talk to the company to—"
"The Saturnine Fuel and Oxygen Company is headed by stubborn
men!" Joachim said. "They refuse to consider or answer our
demands! That is why I have come to appeal directly to the
operators of these ice-sweepers! You must immediately stop
sweeping the Rings into your tanks! You must tell your superiors that
you refuse to destroy the crowning glory of the Solar System!"
Ranjit said, "They'd just hire somebody else. I don't know as we are
destroying the Rings very fast. This was the first sweeper put in orbit
nine years ago, and I can't tell no difference in Ring B. There's an
awful lot of stuff in the Rings. Some of the balls are solid ice, but
some are just ice coated, so we melt it off and throw out the core.
Some don't have ice on it, so we throw it back. We don't use
hydroponics on the sweepers. We get plenty of oxygen when we
take off hydrogen, so we toss a lot of solid CO2 overboard, too. No,
we ain't taking as much from the Rings as you think. They'll get ionic
motors to working, one of these days, and it won't take hardly no fuel
at all."
"Nevertheless, I believe—" Joachim tried to say.
"You've got a hard hull, anyhow," Ranjit said, "coming out here telling
me to stop when you need fuel yourself. Supposing I stopped right
now. How would you get away? And what would I do? I got a bad
heart. About half of it's artificial. That's why I've been living under
zero G for fifteen years. I can't go back to Earth. The docs say more
than four-tenths G would do for me. Before I got this job, I was living
in a hulk orbiting around Titan, just waiting to pass beyond. Now I got
something useful to do and something to live for. I may last till I'm
120."
Henry, who had been stupidly smiling at Morna with too much
intensity to follow the discussion, jerked his head around and
gasped, "You, you can't stand acceleration?"
Ranjit said, "Not enough to go anywhere. I got a bad heart, a very
bad heart. About half of it's—"
Vicenzo and Aziz, spacesuited, crowded into the compartment
through the doorway in the netting. "Dis is a stickup!" Aziz
announced over a loudspeaker on the chest of his suit.
"Don't move," Vicenzo growled, scowling beneath his black bangs.
Since deadly weapons were extremely rare and difficult to obtain, the
pair had armed themselves with long, hand-made knives. Vicenzo
also carried a cumbersome rocket launcher, a remodeled lifeline
tube.

"Gangsters!" Ranjit wheezed. "I ain't seen a gangster in twenty

years! I fought them in the Crime War! I—"
"Shut up, old man," Vicenzo ordered. His sideburns twitched around
his cruel mouth. "Everything fixed here, Henry?"
"Are you into this, Henry?" Ranjit said.
Vicenzo snarled, "I told you to shut up!"
"Let me talk to you alone, Vicenzo," Henry said.
"Spill it now. Is this all the crew? Did you smash communications?"
"Yes," Henry admitted. "The old man is the crew. The others just
came aboard."
"Why didn't you fix the other ship?" Vicenzo said. "We had to clamp
on, because it was blocking the valve. We came through it, and you
hadn't even smashed the radio. There might've been a crew aboard,
for all you knew."
"Vicenzo's a streak, kid," Aziz said. The short, wide man's sallow
face looked horrible behind the faceplate. "You oughta done like
Vicenzo said," he advised. "You won't get nowhere goofin' like dat or
—Hey, take a check on the doll! I never thought to see nothin' like
dat on a sweeper! Lucky me!"
"She's not in this," Henry said. "She's from the other ship. Leave her
alone, Aziz."
"Don't yap at me like dat, kid," Aziz warned.
Morna, who had stood as if frozen, turned to Henry and squealed,
"You're a gangster? How awful, after I thought you were nice, letting
Ranjit save your life!"
"Shut up, girl," Vicenzo said.
"A gangster!" Morna shrieked. She slapped Henry twice across the
face, knocking his shoes loose from the magnetic deck. He flipped
and fell against the net with his feet touching the ceiling.
In the confusion, Joachim broke from his terrified trance and dived
through the door. "I'll get 'im!" Aziz roared and, waving his knife,
followed the fleeing Second Vice-President.
As Henry struggled to regain an erect position, Morna wailed in his
ear, "I thought you were good and handsome, but you're a gangster!
You didn't deserve to be saved!" She slapped him again, knocking
him to the deck, and began to weep wildly. Under no gravity, the
tears spread in a film across her face. Surprised, she stopped crying
and wiped her cheeks with her hands. A few tears flew into the air as
shimmering globes.
Joachim floated into the compartment. His long chin was bruised,
and he muttered, "Save the Rings!" Aziz, grinning, followed and
stood on guard before the door. Morna gasped, darted to her
employer, and made helpless gestures.
"All right, now," Vicenzo said. "Let's get this jaunt moving. Henry, tie
these cubes up and—"
"We can't do it, Vicenzo," Henry said, staring in horror at Joachim's
half-conscious body.
"What?"
Henry said, "It's the old man. His heart's bad. The acceleration would
k-kill him!"
"Dat's the chance he's gotta take," Aziz sneered.
"You mean you don't care if you m-murder someone?"
"It's all in the orbit," Vicenzo said. "I told you that when you clinched
with us."
"I didn't believe you," Henry said. "You can't hurt Ranjit! He saved my
life!"
"Dat's what he was supposed to do, so's ya could get aboard," Aziz
said.
"But he really did save me! He pulled me in on a lifeline. I would've
missed the station. I wouldn't be surprised if you two tried to m-
murder me! I'm checking out. The whole deal's off. Both of you get
back in the ship and go! I'll give you that much of a chance. I'll stay
here and take Revision, or whatever's coming to me."
"The kid's stripped his cogs," Aziz laughed through his loudspeaker.
Vicenzo aimed his rocket launcher at Henry's midriff. He growled,
"Too bad you turned cube, Henry."
"Don't fire that thing in here!" Ranjit yelled. "You'll blow a hole
through the hull! What are you fellows up to? I never saw such
mixed-up goings on."

Henry said, "They're going to steal the ice-sweeper. That's why I had
to be taken aboard, so I could wreck your equipment and keep you
from reporting us or calling the other stations. The sweeper is
supposed to vanish without a trace. I'm sorry I ruined your radio,
Ranjit. I was supposed to try to keep the crew from becoming
suspicious while Vicenzo and Aziz were clinching. They're going to
move the sweeper into a Sun orbit, somewhere, and use it for a
base. They're going to hijack spaceships."
"Of all the crazy schemes!" Ranjit snorted. "You gangsters are space
happy! You're ready for the psychodocs! You can't get away with
gangstering these days! I fought your grandfathers in the Crime War.
I was in the Battle of Jupiter Orbit. We whipped you good, and nearly
wiped you out, but, ever so often, a few of you still turn up and try
silly stuff like this. Solar Government will get you!"
Vicenzo said, "Shut up, old man! Aziz, hold the girl. If the rest of you
don't behave while I'm tying you, Aziz will stab her."
"Dat'd be a awful waste," Aziz said, twisting Morna's arms behind her
back. Morna began to cry again. Teardrops floated like tiny planets.
Vicenzo pulled a long cord from his pack and lifted Joachim with one
hand. "Save the Rings," Joachim mumbled. "You are desecrating the
glory of the Solar System." Vicenzo lashed Joachim's wrists to an
overhead pipe.
Vicenzo said, "All right, Henry, you and the old man put your hands
against that pipe."
Ranjit said, "I'm 107 years old, but never in my life—"