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Superconductivity mechanism
Despite 20 years of research there is still no agreement concerning the electronic and magnetic properties of the high temperature superconducting cuprates. We are leading an international effort to understand these strongly correlated materials.
Previous research by Industrial Research led to a breakthrough in the bid to find the true mechanism of high temperature superconductivity. A previously unknown isotope effect was discovered after replacing ordinary oxygen atoms in a high temperature superconductor with ‘heavy’ oxygen atoms.
The discovery negated a popular theory and eliminated some contenders for the cause of superconductivity. The search for the real cause continues.
This research programme is supported by the Marsden Fund and the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology.