superconductor

Silicon wafers are a key step in semiconductor manufacturing, but soon they might be replaced by a new material called Q-silicon for quantum computers and spintronic devices

Materials

Meet Q-silicon, a new magnetic material for spintronic quantum computers

A brand new form of silicon might help extend its use into the future. Engineers at North Carolina State University have discovered a material called Q-silicon, with new properties that could have important uses in quantum computers and spintronics.

A tiny lump of lutetium hydride, a new material that a team of scientists claim can be a superconductor at room temperature under relatively low pressure

Materials

"Reddmatter" shows evidence of room temperature superconductivity

Scientists at the University of Rochester claim to have created a material that acts as a superconductor at room temperature and lower pressures than ever before. If confirmed, this “reddmatter,” as they call it, could mark a major breakthrough.

Artist's impression of a superconducting chip

Electronics

One-way superconducting diode has massive implications for electronics

A TU Delft team has demonstrated a one-way superconductor that gives zero resistance in one direction, but blocks current completely in the other. The discovery, long thought impossible, heralds a 400x leap in computing speed and huge energy savings.

Researchers have created graphene electronic devices that are both insulators and superconductors at the same time, in different parts of the material

Electronics

Magic angle makes graphene simultaneously superconducting and insulating

Graphene just keeps getting weirder. Engineers at ETH Zurich have now managed to tweak the overachieving material so that some parts of a flake can be an electrical insulator while other areas act as a superconductor, just nanometers apart.

The new mini-thermometers can be seen attached to the lower left and upper right corners of this amplifier

Electronics

Tiny superconducting thermometer monitors ultracold temperatures

Some advanced electronic devices only function at extremely cold temperatures. Now engineers at NIST have developed a tiny cryogenic thermometer that uses a new mechanism to keep an eye on these sensitive instruments without taking up much room.

A team used a pressure chamber, which squeezes samples to 1.7 million times atmospheric pressure, to make lanthanum hydride, which was found to remain superconductive at -23° C

Materials

New superconductivity record edges closer to room temperature

Superconductors can conduct electricity with absolutely no loss, so they could be revolutionary if not for one little problem: they only work if kept extremely cold. But now researchers at Max Planck have reported a new record high temperature for superconductivity, at a toasty -23° C (-9.4° F).

A cutaway view of the proposed ARC reactor that could see commercially viable fusion power become a reality sooner rather than later

Energy

ARC reactor design uses superconducting magnets to draw fusion power closer

MIT's new compact tokamak fusion reactor design is based on the latest magnetic superconductor technology. The ARC (affordable, robust, compact) reactor design promises smaller, cheaper reactors that could make fusion power practical within 10 years.

Research into aluminum superatoms may lead to the discovery of a new class of high-temperature superconductors (Image: Shutterstock)

Electronics

Aluminum "superatoms" hint at a new type of superconducting materials

Scientists at the University of Southern California (USC) have made steps toward discovering a new family of superconductor materials that work at relatively high temperatures, with possible applications in physics research, medical imaging and high-performance electronics.

The UCSB von Neumann quantum computer. The small black squares are the superconducting qubits, and the meandering lines are the memory resonators. (Photo: Erik Lucero)

Electronics

Quantum computer with separate CPU and memory represents significant breakthrough

UCSB's new general-purpose quantum computer has separate CPU, memory, and programming electronics.

The VoltAir is a concept all-electric airliner, that could be flying within 25 years (Photo: Gizmag)

Aircraft

EADS VoltAir all-electric aircraft concept unveiled in Paris

The VoltAir is a concept all-electric airliner, that could be flying within 25 years.

Surface electron band structure of bismuth telluride. (Credit: Image courtesy of Yulin Chen and Z. X. Shen)

Electronics

Long sought-after material could revolutionize electronics

A newly discovered material could make heat dissipation in electronic circuits a thing of the past.