Paul Ching-Wu Chu

New Capabilities

Senior author on the 151K result

For 33 years, a mercury-based ceramic held the record for superconductivity at normal atmospheric pressure: 133 Kelvin, set in 1993. Physicists at the University of Houston just pushed that mark 18 degrees higher.

Updated May 28

New Capabilities

Pioneering pressure-quench protocol for ambient-pressure superconductors

Scientists just cracked a problem that's plagued superconductor research for decades: how to make these wonder materials work without crushing them under diamond-anvil pressures. In February 2025, teams at SLAC and Stanford stabilized nickelate superconductors at everyday pressure using substrate compression, while University of Houston researchers locked in a superconducting state using a rapid pressure-release technique.

Updated May 19