A Perspective on Medical Applications of High Temperature Superconductors

Abstract

Superconductivity was first discovered in mercury in 1911 by Dutch physicist Kamerlingh Onnes of Leiden University. Superconductivity has also been discovered in a number of other metallic elements. Collectively these elements are called low temperate superconductors (LTS). In 1986, Bednorz and Muller discovered superconductivity in a brittle ceramic Ba-La-Cu-O compound at 30 K [1]. A number of other compounds like yttrium barium copper oxide (YBCO), bismuth strontium calcium copper oxide (BSCCO) and thallium barium calcium copper oxide (TBCCO) have been found to superconduct at even higher temperatures. The highest superconducting temperature of 138 K was observed in a thallium-doped, mercuric cuprate in 1994. A new family of arsenic based superconducting materials termed oxypnictides has been discovered recently. These compounds are collectively called high temperature superconductors (HTS).