Room-temperature superconductor

Unsolved problem in physics:
Is it possible to make a material that is a superconductor at room temperature and atmospheric pressure?

A room-temperature superconductor is a hypothetical material capable of displaying superconductivity above 0 °C (273 K; 32 °F), operating temperatures which are commonly encountered in everyday settings. As of 2023, the material with the highest accepted superconducting temperature was highly pressurized lanthanum decahydride, whose transition temperature is approximately 250 K (−23 °C) at 200 GPa.[1][2]

At standard atmospheric pressure, cuprates currently hold the temperature record, manifesting superconductivity at temperatures as high as 138 K (−135 °C).[3] Over time, researchers have consistently encountered superconductivity at temperatures previously considered unexpected or impossible, challenging the notion that achieving superconductivity at room temperature was infeasible.[4][5] The concept of "near-room temperature" transient effects has been a subject of discussion since the early 1950s.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference hemley was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference eremets was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Dai, Pengcheng; Chakoumakos, Bryan C.; Sun, G.F.; Wong, Kai Wai; Xin, Ying; Lu, D.F. (1995). "Synthesis and neutron powder diffraction study of the superconductor HgBa2Ca2Cu3O8+δ by Tl substitution". Physica C. 243 (3–4): 201–206. Bibcode:1995PhyC..243..201D. doi:10.1016/0921-4534(94)02461-8.
  4. ^ Geballe, Theodore Henry (12 March 1993). "Paths to Higher Temperature Superconductors". Science. 259 (5101): 1550–1551. Bibcode:1993Sci...259.1550G. doi:10.1126/science.259.5101.1550. PMID 17733017.
  5. ^ Jones, Barbara A.; Roche, Kevin P. (25 July 2016). "Almaden Institute 2012: Superconductivity 297 K – Synthetic Routes to Room Temperature Superconductivity". researcher.watson.ibm.com. Archived from the original on 12 December 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2018.