Washington Holds First Federal Conference on Commercial Applications of Superconductivity
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mately 13 K in a b a r i u m - l e a d - b i s m u t h oxide in 1975. After reviewing what is currently known and u n k n o w n concerning the new materials, Chu listed four criteria he would apply to verify superconductivity in new materials: zero resistance, a full Meissner effect, stability of the effect, and high reproducibility of the effect. The 90 K superconductors fulfill each of these four criteria. If the criteria of stability and high reproducibility are relaxed and only a partial Meissner effect allowed, Tc rises to 225 K. If only zero resistance is required it rises to 290 K, and if only a sudden drop in resistance is required, superconductivity effects have been observed at 350 K. None of these results is presently regarded as confirmation of superconductivity. Chu expressed a hope that support for continued research on these materials would be "steady and not at the expense of other areas of science." Robert Schrieffer (University of California, Santa Barbara) then described various theoretical concepts which might explain superconductivity at high temperatures. E x p l a i n i n g t h e n e e d for an e l e c t r o n electron attractive interaction a n d the "mattress effect" in the traditional phonon coupling mechanism, he proposed adding a "spin bag" mechanism to the list of possible attractive interactions. In this hypothesis, electrons suppress spin fluctuations in their n e i g h b o r h o o d , allowing other electrons to s h a r e in the s u p p r e s s e d fluctuation region. S. Faris (Hyres, Inc.) and S. Burnett (GA Technology), introduced by Mary Good (Allied Signal Corporation), described current applications of superconductivity in electrical signal analysis, infrared detectors, and magnets for magnetic resonance imaging in the medical field. That the Administration regards the commercialization of the new materials as extremely important was underscored by P r e s i d e n t R e a g a n ' s a p p e a r a n c e at the meeting. He was flanked by the Secretaries of State, Defense, and Energy. Admitting that "it is h a r d to keep u p with rapid advances up the Kelvin scale," the President went on to describe the opportunities these discoveries present. Reagan urged scientists to "bridge the gap from the laboratory to the marketplace," reaffirming the primary motivation for the conference. Referring to his April Executive Order concerning e n h a n c e m e n t of technology transfer to the private sector, Reagan pointed to several goals including revised patent laws and freedom of information
requirements, and relaxed antitrust laws so that the United States can react to the global competition in superconductivity. The President said he will send legislation to Congress covering these areas among eleven points of a superconducting initiative. Also proposed is the creation of a "wise-man" advisory group, quick start grants, establishment of superconductor r e s e a r c h c e n t e r s , a n d $150 million in research and development funding through the Department of Defense over three years.
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