[http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2011/10/levitation.jpg](http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/18/levitating-superconductor-floats-within-a-magnetic-field-so-you/)
What happens when you douse a superconducting urinal cake with liquid nitrogen? We haven’t given it too much thought, to be honest, though we’re guessing it would look a lot like the “levitating” disc pictured above. Developed by researchers at Tel-Aviv University, this device is actually a superconductor hovering over a “supercooled” magnet. While locked within the magnetic field, it can rotate around a vertical axis, turn upside down or do laps around a track – all thanks to a phenomenon that Tel-Aviv’s physicists call “quantum trapping.” We’re not really sure what that entails, but we do know that the results are pretty incredible. Check them out for yourself, after the break.
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]Continue reading Levitating superconductor floats within a magnetic field so you don’t have to (video)
Levitating superconductor floats within a magnetic field so you don’t have to (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Oct 2011 10:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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