Confinement effects on intermediate state flux patterns in mesoscopic type-I superconductors

Intermediate state (IS) flux structures in mesoscopic type-I superconductors are investigated within the Ginzburg-Landau theory. In addition to well-established tubular and laminar structures, the strong confinement leads to the formation of (i) a phase of singly quantized vortices, which is typical for type-II superconductors and (ii) a ring of a normal domain at equilibrium. The stability region and the formation process of these IS flux structures are strongly influenced by the geometry of the sample.