Vol. 01 Decoding Room-Temperature Superconductor LK-99: Real or Fake, Replication Controversies, and Is Energy Freedom Here?

August 11, 2023

On July 23, 2023, the Korea Institute of Science and Technology published a paper on arXiv claiming the discovery of LK-99, a new material capable of superconductivity at room temperature — room temperature, ambient pressure, superconductivity. Strung together, these three keywords made the energy-transformation-driven Fourth Industrial Revolution feel tantalizingly close, sending shockwaves across the globe.

Two weeks on, replication and verification efforts continue. As the initial shock and excitement subsides, cooler-headed discussion has taken the lead. Multiple developments as of this podcast's release indicate we still have distance to cover before achieving room-temperature superconductivity. But with encouraging evidence and continued exploration, we may yet deepen our understanding of superconducting materials.

Hosts

Linda, Managing Director at Yunqi Capital, Head of Organization, Operations & Portfolio Services

Zheng Ruiting (Midi), Executive Director at Yunqi Capital, Head of Hard Tech Investment

Guests

Yue Zhao, Associate Professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Member of the National Superconducting Standardization Technical Committee, Shanghai Distinguished Professor, specializing in superconducting materials and application technology;

Jie Sheng, Associate Professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, specializing in superconducting materials applications

03:14 There are plenty of superconducting materials out there — why did LK-99 "break the internet"?

08:14 What are all those videos of samples "levitating and spinning" actually trying to verify?

10:25 What's actually "new" about the LK-99 material?

15:14 What experiments are being done in "replication" efforts? What metrics need to be replicated? What are the conclusions so far?

18:47 What superconducting applications already exist in our daily lives?

20:19 What bottlenecks remain for large-scale superconducting applications?

24:56 What progress has China's superconducting industry made?

28:19 What major breakthroughs has the global superconducting industry achieved?

32:39 In the foreseeable future, how else might superconducting transform our lives?

Program music generated by AI platform Mubert Inc.

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View episode transcript on Xiaoyuzhou