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Nature 409, 8-11 (4 January 2001) | doi:10.1038/35051238

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Mind the pseudogap

Mark Buchanan1

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Physicists are still searching for a convincing theory of high-temperature superconductivity. But at least the nature of the puzzle is becoming clearer. Mark Buchanan weighs the odds of a breakthrough in understanding.

We can blame Georg Bednorz and Alex Müller. Fifteen years ago, physicists thought they understood superconductivity — the tendency of some materials to conduct current with zero resistance at temperatures of around 10 to 20 kelvin.