Science
What is A superconductor?
A superconductor is a material that conducts electricity with zero resistance once cooled below a certain temperature, so current flows through it without losing any energy. It also pushes out magnetic fields, which lets magnets levitate above it.
See it, don’t just read it.
Watch a 2-minute lesson with voice + animation that explains a superconductor.
Key things to understand
- 1Below a 'critical temperature', its electrical resistance drops to exactly zero.
- 2With no resistance, a current can flow indefinitely without losing energy as heat.
- 3Superconductors expel magnetic fields (the Meissner effect), enabling magnetic levitation.
- 4They power MRI machines, maglev trains, and powerful research magnets.
- 5Most require extreme cold; a major goal is a practical room-temperature superconductor.
Frequently asked questions
- Why do superconductors need to be so cold?
- Heat makes atoms vibrate and disrupt the electron pairing that enables zero resistance; cooling quiets the vibrations so superconductivity can occur.
- What is a room-temperature superconductor?
- A long-sought material that would superconduct without extreme cooling — it would transform power grids, electronics, and transport.
- How do superconductors make things levitate?
- They push out magnetic fields, so a magnet placed above one is repelled and floats — the basis of maglev trains.