Scientists find static 'stripes' of electrical charge in copper-oxide superconductor

Friday, October 14, 2016 - 10:02 in Physics & Chemistry

Cuprates, or compounds made of copper and oxygen, can conduct electricity without resistance by being "doped" with other chemical elements and cooled to temperatures below minus 210 degrees Fahrenheit. Despite extensive research on this phenomenon—called high-temperature superconductivity—scientists still aren't sure how it works. Previous experiments have established that ordered arrangements of electrical charges known as "charge stripes" coexist with superconductivity in many forms of cuprates. However, the exact nature of these stripes—specifically, whether they fluctuate over time—and their relationship to superconductivity—whether they work together with or against the electrons that pair up and flow without energy loss—have remained a mystery.

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