New Material May Reveal Inner Workings of Hi-temp Superconductors
Scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have discovered a new copper-based compound that exhibits properties never before seen in a superconductor. This material, known only by its chemical formula YLBLCO, is the first one ever found that exhibits properties of both regimes – when electrons are added or removed from its crystal structure.
The material can only be made to superconduct by removing electrons. But if electrons are added, it also exhibits some properties only seen in those materials that superconduct with an electron surplus. This “ambipolar” material provides an opportunity to study the relationship between the two ways of creating superconductors, an opportunity that was unavailable before this material was found.
The results are described in detail in a “News and Views” article in the August, 2010, issue of Nature Physics, “Doped Mott insulators: Breaking through to the other side.”
Keywords: Superconductors, Neutron Research, Ambipolar, Cuprate
