The unexpected coexistence of superconductivity and magnetism observed in two experiments this year has finally been explained by MIT scientists, whose new work demonstrates the inner workings of a novel quantum phenomenon.
Before those recent experiments, theorists had assumed that one quantum state must inherently destroy the other, allowing only one to persist at any given time. The proposed explanation, based on the MIT team’s groundbreaking research, has now been published in a recent paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Magnetism and superconductivity are similar in that both arise from electron behavior. In magnetism, a synchronized spin creates a pull, while in a superconductor, electrons form “Cooper pairs,” which can glide frictionlessly through the material. The delicacy of the Cooper pair bond—a significant obstacle to developing reliable room-temperature superconducting technologies—is thought to be insufficiently robust to resist magnetic fields. This should cause the pairs to separate and exit a superconducting state when exposed to a magnetic field.
The first surprising experiment demonstrating the coexistence of magnetism and superconductivity was conducted on a material composed of multiple layers of rhombohedral graphene.
“It was electrifying,” said lead author of the new paper, Senthil Todadri, the William and Emma Rogers Professor of Physics at MIT, who recalls hearing Ju present the results at a conference. “It set the place alive. And it introduced more questions as to how this could be possible.”
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