Validating LK-99 as a superconductor
This team has successfully grown and levitated LK-99 at room temperature and ambient pressure, the most promising indication that LK-99 may indeed be a room temperature superconductor.
The chances of LK-99 superconductivity are still very low.
Commentary from Hacker News
There’s an interesting discussion of this news over at Hacker News.
How do we know this isn’t just diamagnetism?
The paper shows a clear phase transition to diamagnetism as the material is cooled. That would be seen in superconductors and not in regular diamagnetic materials. I’m not aware of any that have that kind of phase transition. Though since we’re in weird territory here, it’s important to note some weird non-superconductor behavior that’s beyond regular diamagnetism might be going on as an alternative explanation. But it is weird.
Also, in the presence of a magnetic field, that transition temperature decreases. That’s pretty huge. Unless this paper is fraudulent, I take this as the biggest positive evidence so far that something besides simple diamagnetism is going on. And, cards on table, with the assumption that the paper is not fraudulent, this pushes my odds above 50% for the first time.
Why are scientists using levitation to verify superconductivity?
With the current fabrication process, they’re only getting a chunk with LK-99 particles sprinkled in. Since nobody yet knows how to fabricate a pure chunk of LK-99, it’ll be hard to measure the true resistance of LK-99.