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A Material Found To Carry Current In a Way Never Before Observed (phys.org)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Phys.Org: Scientists at the Florida State University-headquartered National High Magnetic Field Laboratory have discovered a behavior in materials called cuprates that suggests they carry current in a way entirely different from conventional metals such as copper. The research, published today in the journal Science, adds new meaning to the materials' moniker, "strange metals." Cuprates are high-temperature superconductors (HTS), meaning they can carry current without any loss of energy at somewhat warmer temperatures than conventional, low-temperature superconductors (LTS). Although scientists understand the physics of LTS, they haven't yet cracked the nut of HTS materials. Exactly how the electrons travel through these materials remains the biggest mystery in the field.
For their research on one specific cuprate, lanthanum strontium copper oxide (LSCO), a team led by MagLab physicist Arkady Shekhter focused on its normal, metallic state -- the state from which superconductivity eventually emerges when the temperature dips low enough. This normal state of cuprates is known as a "strange" or "bad" metal, in part because the electrons don't conduct electricity particularly well. Scientists have studied conventional metals for more than a century and generally agree on how electricity travels through them. They call the units that carry charge through those metals "quasiparticles," which are essentially electrons after factoring in their environment. These quasiparticles act nearly independently of each other as they carry electric charge through a conductor. But does quasiparticle flow also explain how electric current travels in the cuprates? At the National MagLab's Pulsed Field Facility in Los Alamos, New Mexico, Shekhter and his team investigated the question. They put LSCO in a very high magnetic field, applied a current to it, then measured the resistance. The resulting data revealed that the current cannot, in fact, travel via conventional quasiparticles, as it does in copper or doped silicon. The normal metallic state of the cuprate, it appeared, was anything but normal.
For their research on one specific cuprate, lanthanum strontium copper oxide (LSCO), a team led by MagLab physicist Arkady Shekhter focused on its normal, metallic state -- the state from which superconductivity eventually emerges when the temperature dips low enough. This normal state of cuprates is known as a "strange" or "bad" metal, in part because the electrons don't conduct electricity particularly well. Scientists have studied conventional metals for more than a century and generally agree on how electricity travels through them. They call the units that carry charge through those metals "quasiparticles," which are essentially electrons after factoring in their environment. These quasiparticles act nearly independently of each other as they carry electric charge through a conductor. But does quasiparticle flow also explain how electric current travels in the cuprates? At the National MagLab's Pulsed Field Facility in Los Alamos, New Mexico, Shekhter and his team investigated the question. They put LSCO in a very high magnetic field, applied a current to it, then measured the resistance. The resulting data revealed that the current cannot, in fact, travel via conventional quasiparticles, as it does in copper or doped silicon. The normal metallic state of the cuprate, it appeared, was anything but normal.
While I understand only half of these words, advances in high temperature superconductors have the potential to have an incredible impact on an incredible amount of things, and understanding how they work is a precious first step.
Imagine super long distance lossless power lines, incredibly strong electromagnets everywhere, awesome maglev trains, and whatever repercussions this might have for electronics.
Sure, HTS still work at cryogenic temperatures, but if they can be at least made to work around the temperatures of cheap liquid nitrogen, this would be awesome!
Well to make it short and frank: ...
People who think electrons flow from + to - have no clue. Electrons are - charged, obviously they wander to the + pole.
And:
People who think there is any merit in comparing vi with EMACS have no clue either, obviously vi wins hands down
Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
You make such an eloquent and insightful observation on electron flow and then completely nullify it with your blasphemous comment against EMACS! HERETIC!!!!
"A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it." - K
I wish I could mod this one up +10. I used to come to /. back in the olden times and it was always an enjoyable part of my workday, now it's 'wade through a mountain of crap to find the occasional pearl.
That said, the advancements in mathematics and materials reinforce my faith in mankind, we aren't dead yet.
Offended? Find a safe space and cry yourself to sleep.