A new state of matter is discovered or what is the mystery of strange metals

Scientists have found out for a relatively long time that rather complex combinations of copper - cuprates, exhibit behavior different from classical metals. And according to the results of recent studies, scientists have discovered a completely new state of matter in them.

The use of these materials demonstrates broad prospects in the formation of high-temperature superconductors, which are so needed by modern power engineering and the entire industry as a whole. Let's see what the peculiarity of these "strange materials" is.

The first discoveries of high temperature conductors

Already back in 1911 the discovery of superconductivity was made in Holland. It was found that at a temperature of only three Kelvin, the resistance of mercury drops to zero (electricity is transmitted without any loss).

Further, this effect was observed in other materials, but always the temperature at which superconductivity was observed remained extremely low.

The changes came only in 1986. It was then that IBM engineers created the first high-temperature superconductor - cupratlanthane and barium. For this K. Müller and G. Bednorz received the Nobel Prize.

Superconductors with a minimum temperature of 77 Kelvin (but not lower) are called high-temperature. This is the temperature at which liquid nitrogen boils.

Currently the most famous high-temperature superconductor is BSCCO (bisco sandwich), consisting of layers of bismuth oxide, strontium, copper and pure calcium.

Thanks to these materials, special devices and products were created in electrical engineering, transport and energy.

What is the mystery of strange metals

Despite the fact that cuprates are already in full use, hundreds of meters of wires are made of them in the Large Hadron Collider. Scientists to this day do not fully understand the physics of high-temperature conductivity.

The BCS theory (named after its creators D. Bardin, L. Cooper and
D. Schrieffer) perfectly describes superconductivity above 30 Kelvin. But only with an increase in temperature, when the effect of superconductivity disappears, then cuprates begin to behave not like ordinary materials.

The electrical resistance of cuprates decreases linearly and not in proportion to the square of the temperature difference. This contradicts the Fermi liquid theory, which was formulated by Lev Landau in 1956.

At extremely low temperatures, electrons exhibit the behavior of an electron gas, and the encountered interaction is described by the equations of quantum mechanics.

In this case, the Fermi liquid theory works for the vast majority of metals, except for the notorious cuprates. That is why physicists have placed them in a special section of "strange metals".

In such "undermetals" electrons move extremely weakly and over short distances. In this case, an intense dissipation of energy occurs.

Therefore, "strange metals" are located exactly in the middle between the usual metals and insulators.

Numerous studies have revealed a large number of "submetals", but without any properties of superconductivity. This further confused the cuprate situation.

Superconductivity of cuprates and magnetic field

An experiment carried out by an international scientific group from the USA, Germany and Colombia showed that the effect of a strong magnetic field of 60-70 Tesla (this is a huge value, at which superconductors lose their conducting properties) changes the resistance of cuprates linearly, and not according to the quadratic law, as in the case of "normal" metals.

In other words, cuprates exhibit the properties of metals, but with great reluctance.

New state of matter

With the accumulation of experimental data on cuprates, it indicates that this is nothing else, as an absolutely unique form of matter, determined by the realities of quantum entanglement in the macroscopic the world.

And an engineering group from the Flatiron Institute of New York managed to create a digital model of "strange metals", which confirmed the assumption that this is nothing but a new state of matter. The so-called intermediate form between common conductive metals and insulating materials.

So it remains to come up with a name for the new state of matter and continue research.

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