"Impossible" One-Way Superconductor Breakthrough May Pave The Way For Future Computers
By Jack Dunhill, IFL Science One-way superconductivity without using magnetic fields has been discovered by researchers, smashing a strong barrier that held superconductivity from revolutionizing the electronics industry. While this feat was previously thought impossible, the researchers used 2D quantum materials to allow electricity to flow only one way through a superconducting material without any energy loss, enabling electronics to become magnitudes faster than what is currently possible with semi-conductors. Their research was published in the journal Nature . “If the 20th century was the century of semi-conductors, the 21st can become the century of the superconductor,” said professor Mazhar Ali, first author of the paper, in a statement . Superconductivity is a goal like no other in electronics. When a material goes below a “critical” temperature (around -269°C), they become superconductors, in which electricity can pass through them with no resistance. Th...