APPLICATIONS OF HIGH-TEMPERATURE SUPERCONDUCTORS ON LEVITATION BEARINGS AND OTHER LEVITATION DEVICES

The ability of high temperature superconductor (HTS) materials to levi tate a magnet under zero field cooled conditions first attracted atten tion to incorporate HTS materials in the construction of magnetic bear ings. However, in practice, it is the role of HTS materials as a stabi lizing component under field cooled conditions that can be exploited w ith the most advantage and ease. In this talk, we will describe severa l versions of HTS bearings developed at the Texas Center for Supercond uctivity. We will also extend the levitation idea to several other pot ential applications such as vibration damping and torque transmission.