Industry warms to superconductors

Abstract

Over a dozen years have passed since high-temperature superconductors were discovered amid a rash of over-enthusiastic claims that these materials would immediately revolutionize the power, transport and communications industries. The public perception may be that after years of research and unprecedented industrial investment there still seems to be no theory of high-temperature superconductivity, and no practical applications either. However, the reality is very different. Many aspects of the physics and chemistry of cuprate super-conductors are now well understood, while the remaining problems are providing a rich source of new physics (see “The underdoped phase of cuprate superconductors” by Bertram Batlogg and Chandra Varma Physics World February 2000 pp33–37). More importantly, however, a wide range of major industrial application are set to appear within the next few years.