Superconductor Definition, Types, and Uses

Superconductor Definition, Types, and Uses A superconductor is an element or metallic alloy which, when cooled below a certain threshold temperature, the material  dramatically loses all electrical resistance. In principle, superconductors can allow electrical current to flow without any energy loss (although, in practice, an ideal superconductor is very hard to produce). This type of current is called a supercurrent. The threshold temperature below which a material transitions into a superconductor state is designated as Tc, which stands for critical temperature. Not all materials turn into superconductors, and the materials that do each have their own value of Tc. Types of Superconductors Type I superconductors act as conductors at room temperature, but when cooled below Tc, the molecular motion within the material reduces enough that the flow of current can move unimpeded.Type 2 superconductors are not particularly good conductors at room temperature, the transition to a superconductor state is more gradual than Type 1 superconductors. The mechanism and physical basis for this change in state is not, at present, fully understood. Type 2 superconductors are typically metallic compounds and alloys. Discovery of the Superconductor Superconductivity was first discovered in 1911 when mercury was cooled to approximately 4 degrees Kelvin by Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes, which earned him the 1913 Nobel Prize in physics. In the years since, this field has greatly expanded and many other forms of superconductors have been discovered, including Type 2 superconductors in the 1930s. The basic theory of superconductivity, BCS Theory, earned the scientists- John Bardeen, Leon Cooper, and John Schrieffer- the 1972 Nobel Prize in physics. A portion of the 1973 Nobel Prize in physics went to Brian Josephson, also for work with superconductivity. In January 1986, Karl Muller and Johannes Bednorz made a discovery that revolutionized how scientists thought of superconductors. Prior to this point, the understanding was that superconductivity manifested only when cooled to  near  absolute zero, but using an oxide of barium, lanthanum, and copper, they found that it became a superconductor at approximately 40 degrees Kelvin. This initiated a race to discover materials that functioned as superconductors at much higher temperatures. In the decades since, the highest temperatures that had been reached were about 133 degrees Kelvin (though you could get up to 164 degrees Kelvin if you applied a high pressure). In August 2015, a paper published in the journal Nature  reported the discovery of superconductivity at a temperature of 203 degrees Kelvin when under high pressure. Applications of Superconductors Superconductors are used in a variety of applications, but most notably within the structure of the Large Hadron Collider. The tunnels that contain the beams of charged particles are surrounded by tubes containing powerful superconductors. The supercurrents that flow through the superconductors generate an intense magnetic field, through electromagnetic induction, that can be used to accelerate and direct the team as desired. In addition, superconductors exhibit the  Meissner effect  in which they cancel all magnetic flux inside the material, becoming perfectly diamagnetic (discovered in 1933). In this case, the magnetic field lines actually travel around the cooled superconductor. It is this property of  superconductors  which is frequently used in magnetic levitation experiments, such as the quantum locking seen in quantum levitation. In other words, if  Back to the Future  style hoverboards ever become a reality. In a less mundane application, superconductors play a role in modern advancements in magnetic levitation trains, which provide a powerful possibility for high-speed public transport that is based on electricity (which can be generated using renewable energy) in contrast to non-renewable current options like airplanes, cars, and coal-powered trains. Edited by Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D.

Term Paper Outline

Term Paper Outline This article will help you get more knowledge on how to write a term paper outline. Writing a term paper outline is the first thing you have to do as soon as you sit down and decide to write your own term paper. The term paper outline defines the things you are about to discuss in your term paper, and how the term paper will come out in whole. When writing a term paper outline you have to seize the whole amount of information you would like to include in your term paper, and structure it the way it would make most effect on the reader. The term paper outline must be written on a clear peace of paper, and with great distinctiveness, as a messy term paper outline can only confuse you, and make you not want to use it. Before sitting down to write the term paper outline you have to complete a procedure named brainstorming. Brainstorming helps you write a good term paper outline, and cover all the points of your term paper outline. Brainstorming is a specific way of thinking, when you think of all the points you would like to mention in your paper. However, this method does not require structuring. You can think first of the ways you would like to end your term paper, and then, think of the introduction whatsoever. This method helps you add some thoughts that were hidden when you simply were thinking of the term paper without brainstorming. After you have completed the brainstorming process, you may start to structure your information. A good way to do that is a method called branching. This is a sort of a diagram, where you draw a tree with branches. Every branch is a thought, connected to a parent thought, which is connected to the trunk of the tree. If you have no idea how to outline a term paper, you may need a sample term paper outline or term paper example, which will help you see how a proper term paper outline is supposed to be done. You may also order a custom term paper outline, and see how an experienced writer sees this term paper, and afterwards use it as your own term paper outline and write a term paper according that outline. If the term paper outline sample doesnt work for you, you might want to consider a term paper outline help. You can ask a proficient writer to help you do your term paper outline, or help with the term paper outline format. The term paper outline format is also a very important part, as there are various formats, which can be used in your term paper outline. It can be either an MLA term paper outline or an APA term paper outline. These formats differ from each other, and it is best for you to be proficient in both of these term paper outline formats. When writing a term paper outline never forget that it will result your term paper in whole. Try to be maximum accurate with your term paper outline and make sure you write it with maximum details, and not forget anything.