Superconducting wireSuperconducting wires are electrical wires made of superconductive material. When cooled below their transition temperatures, they have zero electrical resistance. Most commonly, conventional superconductors such as niobium–titanium are used, but high-temperature superconductors such as YBCO are entering the market. Superconducting wire's advantages over copper or aluminum include higher maximum current densities and zero power dissipation.
Magnetic fieldProperty of space that quantifies the magnetic influence at a given locationIn magnetism and electromagnetism, magnetic field is a physical property of space that quantifies the magnetic influence at a given location.
Meissner effectIn condensed-matter physics, the Meissner effect (or Meissner–Ochsenfeld effect) is the expulsion of a magnetic field from a superconductor during its transition to the superconducting state when it is cooled below the critical temperature. This expulsion occurs because the external magnetic field induces lossless, persistent screening currents near the material's surface, which generate an opposing magnetic field that exactly cancels the external field within the bulk.
Electrical resistance and conductanceThe electrical resistance of an object is a measure of its opposition to the flow of electric current. Its reciprocal quantity is electrical conductance, measuring the ease with which an electric current passes. Electrical resistance shares some conceptual parallels with mechanical friction. The SI unit of electrical resistance is the ohm (Ω), while electrical conductance is measured in siemens (S).
Electric currentAn electric current is a flow of charged particles, such as electrons or ions, through an electrical conductor or space. It is defined as the net rate at which electric charge flows through a surface. The moving particles are called charge carriers, which may be of several types, depending on the conductor. In electric circuits, the charge carriers are often electrons moving through a wire. In semiconductors, the charge carriers can be electrons or holes.
Heike Kamerlingh OnnesHeike Kamerlingh Onnes (Dutch:; 21 September 1853 – 21 February 1926) was a Dutch experimental physicist who became the first to liquefyhelium, cooling it to near 1.5 kelvin (K). For this work, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1913. In 1911, using liquid helium to investigate the electrical conductivity of solid mercury, Kamerlingh Onnes found that its electrical resistance vanishes at 4.2 K, i.e. superconductivity.
Phase transitionIn physics, chemistry and biology, a phase transition (or phase change) is the physical process of transition between one state of a medium and another. Commonly the term is used to refer to changes among the basic states of matter: solid, liquid, and gas, and in rare cases, plasma. A phase of a thermodynamic system and the states of matter have uniform physical properties.
Electrical conductorIn physics and electrical engineering, a conductor is an object or type of material that allows the flow of charge (electric current) in one or more directions. Materials made of metal are common electrical conductors. The flow of negatively charged electrons generates electric current, positively charged holes, and positive or negative ions in some cases.
Quantum mechanicsDescription of physical properties at the atomic and subatomic scaleWave functions of the electron in a hydrogen atom at different energy levels. Quantum mechanics cannot predict the exact location of a particle in space, only the probability of finding it at different locations.
Absolute zeroAbsolute zero is the theoretically coldest temperature, a state at which a system's internal energy, and in ideal cases entropy, reach their minimum values. The Kelvin scale is defined so that absolute zero is 0 Kelvin, equivalent to −273.15 °C on the Celsius scale, and −459.67 °F on the Fahrenheit scale. The Kelvin and Rankine temperature scales set their zero points at absolute zero by definition.
FerromagnetismLook up in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
SpectroscopyStudy involving matter and electromagnetic radiationA prism separates white light by dispersing it into its component colors, which can then be studied using spectroscopy.Spectroscopy is the field of study that measures and interprets electromagnetic spectra as it interacts with matter. In narrower contexts, spectroscopy is the precise study of color as generalized from radiated visible light to all bands of the electromagnetic spectrum.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.