Houston scientist Dr. Paul Chu upends the physics world with superconductivity breakthrough
UH scientist Chu’s ground-breaking work turned the world of physics upside down
It was March 1, 1987, and just a few weeks earlier a Houston scientist named Paul Chu had turned the world of physics upside down by announcing he had created a material - a calculated mix of yttrium, barium, copper and oxygen - that could conduct electricity with no resistance. And he had done it at the “high” temperature of 93 degrees Kelvin, breaking a barrier many in the science community weren’t sure could be crossed.
Chu’s discovery of a high-temperature superconductor promised to usher in a new age of electricity distribution and storage, transportation and computing.