We investigate hysteresis in the transport properties of Superconductor - Normal metal - Superconductor (S-N-S) junctions at low temperatures by measuring directly the electron temperature in the normal metal. Our results demonstrate unambiguously that the hysteresis results from an increase of the normal metal electron temperature once the junction switches to the resistive state. In our geometry, the electron temperature increase is governed by the thermal resistance of the superconducting electrodes of the junction.
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