LBCO Phase Diagram (IMAGE) DOE/Brookhaven National Laboratory Caption A phase diagram of LBCO at different temperatures and magnetic field strengths. Colors represent how resistant the material is to the flow of electrical current, with purple being a superconductor with no resistance. When cooled to near absolute zero with no magnetic field, the material acts as a 3-D superconductor. As the magnetic field strength goes up, 3-D superconductivity disappears, but 2-D superconductivity reappears at higher field strength, then disappears again. At the highest fields, resistance grew, but the material retained some unusual metallic conductivity, which the scientists interpreted as an indication that charge-carrier pairs might persist even after superconductivity is destroyed. Credit Brookhaven National Laboratory Usage Restrictions OK for use with stories about this research License Licensed content Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.