Superconductors are materials with zero electrical resistance. Unlike modern electric current transmission devices, they do not lose energy and do not heat up. However, superconductors have very limited technical conditions and cannot operate at room temperature.

The advent of superconductors that can be used at room temperature will lead to the creation of super-fast computers and super-fast trains, reducing the size of electronic devices and overall reductions in electricity consumption.

Recipe 50 years old

Such a superconductor was proposed more than 50 years ago by physicist William Little. Scientists have struggled for decades to make this work, but even after confirming the viability of the idea, they were unable to overcome the challenges that arose. until recently.

One of the ways to implement Little’s idea is to modify the lattice of carbon nanotubes, which requires highly precise control of chemical reactions. A research team at the University of Virginia has found a solution in DNA, the genetic material that contains instructions for living cells. The scientists used the same approach for strikingly accurate structural design only at the level of individual molecules. As a result, they obtained a lattice of correctly arranged carbon nanotubes.

The researchers say the toys designed by Little have yet to be tested for superconductivity, but at least it demonstrates the viability of the concept and has great potential for the future. They believe that the method they created will have a wide application area, especially in physics. But it also confirms the possibility of producing a Small superconductor at room temperature.