Switching from blue to pink to red, “redmatter” has just been created in the lab by “material witch” Ranga Dias and colleagues and promises to change the world.
Redmatter is described as a “very red” superconducting material , created in a modern “alchemy” fashion: Mixing a rare earth metal called lutetium with hydrogen and a small amount of nitrogen, to they react in 2-3 days at high temperature.
The Independent newspaper quotes the description of the scientists: In the laboratory, under high pressure and miraculous reactions, the original blue mixture gradually turns pink and achieves a superconducting state, then continues to become dark red in the non-superconducting state.
The new material, when not under high pressure, changes color to achieve a superconducting state – (Photo: Ranga Dias).
To work, the material needs to be heated to 20.5 degrees Celsius, then compressed at a pressure of about 145,000 psi, which helps it regain superconductivity – the ability that makes the material This can change the world.
Far superior to gold, this superconducting metal can transmit electricity in a dream state: Without any resistance . As a result, it has the potential to help create the most efficient power transmission grids , saving up to 200 million megawatt-hours of resistive consumption from today’s technology.
It could also contribute to nuclear fusion, a long-awaited technology to generate endless power. In addition, it has the potential to contribute to the technology of high-speed trains, gliders, and new medical devices.
This breakthrough material was born thanks to the hands of a research team led by Professor Ranga Dias from the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Rochester (USA).
Professor Dias had previously found two other materials, slightly less groundbreaking but also superconducting materials with amazing applications, reported in two studies published in two scientific journals. Nature and Physical Review Letters. However, the Nature article was later withdrawn because of an unresolved debate.
Superconducting materials more advanced than redmatter have been described in a new report, published in Nature on March 10.