Scientists have lowered pressure for material to superconduct at room temperature

Scientists have been trying for years to create materials that are superconductive at room temperature.

Such a material will make it possible to create cooler electronics and dramatically increase theIt wasn't until the end of last year that the first such material was created, a hydrogen-rich compound that, when compressed to 267 GPa, became superconductive.And, while this feat was a step in the right direction, the need for high pressure made the material impractical for everyday use.In the new work, the same team found a way to drastically reduce the required pressure by changing the previous method — they combined hydrogen with yttrium instead of carbon and sulfur.

Previous studies have shown that materials withhigh hydrogen content is well suited for creating superconducting materials at higher temperatures, which is why they chose it for their experiments.

Two diamond anvils were used in the work to create pressure.Between them was hydrogen gas and a sample of yttrium in the solid state.The materials were separated by a sheet of palladium, which the team added to prevent yttrium from oxidizing — it also served as a catalyst, helping to move hydrogen atoms into yttrium.Testing of the resulting material showed that it has superconductivity at 182 GPa — much lower than last year, but still too high for practical use.However, scientists suggest that they are moving in the right direction.To revise its technique to learn more about its potential — and, of course, to see if it can be used to create a superconducting material at room temperature.

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