Woodstock of physics
Encyclopedia
The term "Woodstock of physics" is often used by physicists
to refer to the marathon session of the American Physical Society
’s meeting on March 18, 1987, which featured 51 presentations concerning the science of high-temperature superconductors. The name is a reference to the 1969 Woodstock Music and Art Festival.
Before a series of breakthroughs in the mid-1980s, most scientists believed that the extremely low temperature requirements of superconductors rendered them impractical for everyday use. However, by March 1987, a flurry of recent research on ceramic
superconductors had succeeded in creating ever-higher superconducting temperatures, including the discovery by the University of Houston
's Paul Chu of a superconductor that operated at minus 139 degrees Celsius
(minus 283 degrees Fahrenheit
), above the temperature of boiling liquid nitrogen
. The scientific community was abuzz with excitement.
The Society added a last-minute session to their annual meeting to discuss the new research in superconductors. The session was scheduled to start at 7:30 PM in the Sutton ballroom of the New York Hilton, but excited scientists started lining up at 5:30. Key researchers such as Chu and Karl Alexander Müller
(who would win the 1987 Nobel Prize
in Physics for his work in superconductors) were given 10 minutes to describe their research; other physicists were given five minutes. Nearly 2,000 scientists tried to squeeze into the ballroom. Those who could not find a seat filled the aisles or watched outside the room on television monitors. The session ended at 3:15 AM, but many lingered until dawn to discuss the presentations.
The meeting caused a surge in mainstream media interest in superconductors, and laboratories around the world raced to pursue breakthroughs in the field. On March 5, 2007, many of the original participants reconvened in Denver for a 20-year anniversary.
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
to refer to the marathon session of the American Physical Society
American Physical Society
The American Physical Society is the world's second largest organization of physicists, behind the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The Society publishes more than a dozen scientific journals, including the world renowned Physical Review and Physical Review Letters, and organizes more than 20...
’s meeting on March 18, 1987, which featured 51 presentations concerning the science of high-temperature superconductors. The name is a reference to the 1969 Woodstock Music and Art Festival.
Before a series of breakthroughs in the mid-1980s, most scientists believed that the extremely low temperature requirements of superconductors rendered them impractical for everyday use. However, by March 1987, a flurry of recent research on ceramic
Ceramic
A ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
superconductors had succeeded in creating ever-higher superconducting temperatures, including the discovery by the University of Houston
University of Houston
The University of Houston is a state research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1927, it is Texas's third-largest university with nearly 40,000 students. Its campus spans 667 acres in southeast Houston, and was known as University of...
's Paul Chu of a superconductor that operated at minus 139 degrees Celsius
Celsius
Celsius is a scale and unit of measurement for temperature. It is named after the Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius , who developed a similar temperature scale two years before his death...
(minus 283 degrees Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit is the temperature scale proposed in 1724 by, and named after, the German physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit . Within this scale, the freezing of water into ice is defined at 32 degrees, while the boiling point of water is defined to be 212 degrees...
), above the temperature of boiling liquid nitrogen
Liquid nitrogen
Liquid nitrogen is nitrogen in a liquid state at a very low temperature. It is produced industrially by fractional distillation of liquid air. Liquid nitrogen is a colourless clear liquid with density of 0.807 g/mL at its boiling point and a dielectric constant of 1.4...
. The scientific community was abuzz with excitement.
The Society added a last-minute session to their annual meeting to discuss the new research in superconductors. The session was scheduled to start at 7:30 PM in the Sutton ballroom of the New York Hilton, but excited scientists started lining up at 5:30. Key researchers such as Chu and Karl Alexander Müller
Karl Alexander Müller
Karl Alexander Müller is a Swiss physicist and Nobel laureate. He received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1987 with Johannes Georg Bednorz for their work in superconductivity in ceramic materials.-Biography:...
(who would win the 1987 Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
in Physics for his work in superconductors) were given 10 minutes to describe their research; other physicists were given five minutes. Nearly 2,000 scientists tried to squeeze into the ballroom. Those who could not find a seat filled the aisles or watched outside the room on television monitors. The session ended at 3:15 AM, but many lingered until dawn to discuss the presentations.
The meeting caused a surge in mainstream media interest in superconductors, and laboratories around the world raced to pursue breakthroughs in the field. On March 5, 2007, many of the original participants reconvened in Denver for a 20-year anniversary.