Physicists at the University of California, Berkeley, have shown that they can tune the properties of a quantum material so that it becomes a superconductor, a material that conducts electricity with no resistance. This discovery could lead to new ways to create superconductors, which are used in a variety of applications, including MRI machines and particle accelerators.

The research team, led by physicist J.C. Séamus Davis, studied a material called iron selenide. This material is a poor conductor of electricity at room temperature, but when it is cooled to very low temperatures, it becomes a superconductor.

The researchers found that they could tune the temperature at which iron selenide becomes a superconductor by changing the amount of pressure applied to the material. They also found that they could change the critical magnetic field, the magnetic field at which a superconductor loses its superconducting properties, by changing the amount of pressure applied.

These findings could lead to new ways to create superconductors that work at higher temperatures and in stronger magnetic fields. This could make superconductors more useful for a variety of applications, including power transmission and medical imaging.

New Findings:

- Quantum material that becomes superconductor at specific temperature and magnetic field

- Can tune properties (temperature/field) by applying pressure

- Potential for higher temperature, higher magnetic field superconductors, improving efficiency

The research was published in the journal Nature Materials.