A superconductor is a material that, under certain circumstances, behaves like a perfect conductor of electricity, offering no resistance whatsoever to the passage of electric current through it.
The new research, led by Prof Séamus Davis of Cornell University, provides evidence of how electrons combine in pairs at subatomic level in different superconductor materials – most notably in insulating copper-based compounds and metallic iron-based compounds already known to have superconductive attributes.
Details of the research are outlined in the latest issue of the journal Science.
“This realisation may broaden the search for new superconductors that can potentially operate under warmer conditions,” Prof Davis said. To read the full article, follow the link to The Irish Times.
