what does superconductors mean?

Question

current and proposed technological applications of superconductors

Answer 1

A superconductor is a material which has no electric resistance (at a certain temperature)

Answer 2

A superconductor is a material that conducts electricity with no resistance. They have the additional quality that if placed in a magnetic field, the field will not penetrate more than a small distance within the conductor.

Superconductors do not possess these characteristics at all temperatures. They have to be brought below some critical temperature before they start superconducting. In fact, superconduction is the result of a "phase change" within the material (just like water freezing into ice is a phase change).

Charge carriers in supper conductors are "superfluid." The source of their superfluidity are little "Cooper pairs" that they form with other carriers. Picture a large group of people marching through a forest. Whenever sections of the large uniform group encounter a tree, the members will separate momentarily and move around the tree and then come right back into formation after that. A similar effect comes with each of the Cooper pairs traveling in the superconductor. In a normal conductor, charges would bounce off structures in the way of charge flow, and this random motion would lead to energy being released as heat. In a superconductor, there is no "bouncing" and so there is no energy loss.

Answer 3

Every conducting material, even the best (traditional) ones like copper and gold, have an electrical resistance. A resistor, in an electronic circuitry, has an effect of limiting the current. This can be (partially) counter-acted by making the conductor (as in Wire) extremely thick. But this - again - is unpractical in many cases (like micro-electronics = Integrated circuits), or simply uneconomical. A so-called superconductor is a material which has theoretically zero electrical resistance. Uses are: Computers where extreme high speed is required, and industrial applications where extreme high current is needed (like very strong magnets).

Answer 4

Some info here....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superconductor

Answer 5

http://science.howstuffworks.com/question610.htm