On the theory of thermoelectric phenomena in superconductors

Abstract

The theory of thermoelectric effects in superconductors is discussed in connection to the recent publication by Marinescu and Overhauser, Phys. Rev. B 55, 11637 (1997). We argue that the charge on-conservation arguments by Marinescu and Overhauser do not require any revision of the Boltzmann transport equation in superconductors, and show that their ``electron-conserving transport theory'' contradicts thermodynamics. Possible mechanisms responsible for the discrepancy between some experimental data and the theory by Galperin, Gurevich, and Kozub, JETP Lett. 17, 476 (1973) are discussed.