Minimum loss sections of flat conductors

Flat conductors used in a single-phase go-and-return configuration are, in general, subject to eddy-current losses due to electromagnetic coupling. There is a particular cross-sectional shape, first studied by A.H.M. Arnold in 1936, which minimises the losses by producing a current distribution which is uniform across the conductor width. The authors use the magnetic vector potential to obtain the conductor shapes, and obtain the dependence of inductance per unit length on minimum separation. Perfect current uniformity is only possible in ideal thin conductors, and results indicate that finite-thickness conductors should have less curvature and a slight taper.<>