"Zero Resistance, Infinite Possibility"
In 1911, Heike Kamerlingh Onnes discovered that when mercury is cooled to near absolute zero (-273°C), its electrical resistance suddenly drops to exactly zero. This state is called Superconductivity. Without resistance, current can flow forever without losing energy, and no heat is generated.
Superconductors expel magnetic fields from their interior, a phenomenon known as the Meissner Effect. This creates a perfect magnetic mirror, allowing magnets to levitate stably above the superconductor. This is the principle behind maglev trains.
In conventional superconductors, electrons pair up into Cooper Pairs. These pairs move in unison like a superfluid, avoiding the collisions with atoms that cause resistance.
Current superconductors require expensive liquid helium or nitrogen cooling. The discovery of a Room-Temperature Superconductor would revolutionize the world: lossless power grids, hyper-fast trains, and powerful quantum computers in our pockets.