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Advances in Superconducting Materials: From Structure and Properties to Applications

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Quantum Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 1 March 2026 | Viewed by 705

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Mechanics and Engineering Sciences, College of Civil Engineering and Mechanics, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
Interests: superconducting magnets; high-temperature superconducting tape and cables; multi-physics coupling modelling; nonlinear mechanical behaviour; computational methods for electromagnetic field simulation; thermal stability; quench protection; cohesive zone model; fracture mechanics

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Guest Editor
Institute for Energy Systems, School of Engineering, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
Interests: electric machines and drives; clean energy conversion; superconductor technology; cryogenic techniques; hydrogen energy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Department of Mechanics and Engineering Sciences, College of Civil Engineering and Mechanics, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
Interests: advanced manufacturing of superconducting materials

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Exhibiting excellent electromagnetic properties such as zero resistance, the Meissner effect and the Josephson effect, superconducting materials facilitate advances in the development of various technologies, including quantum computing (via Josephson junction-based qubits), magnetic confinement fusion (through high-field magnets), and lossless power grids. They additionally advance ultra-high-speed maglev transportation and high-precision medical imaging. However, many challenges still remain in the applications of superconductors. For example, quenching can cause superconducting materials to lose their superconductivity and can even burn out superconducting devices, and critical currents of superconductors degrade significantly when subjected to small strains (i.e., an irreversible strain of less than 1%).

This Special Issue focuses on innovations in the development of superconducting materials regarding their structure, properties, and application. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following: experimental, theoretical and numerical studies on microstructures; pinning properties; the vortex dynamics of superconductors; the additive manufacturing of superconducting materials; the electromagnetic–thermal–mechanical performance of superconducting thin films, conductors, cables, and magnets. We welcome original research, methodological developments, and review articles.

Dr. Donghui Liu
Dr. Hongye Zhang
Dr. Baoqiang Zhang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • superconducting materials
  • microstructural characterization and analysis
  • pinning properties and vortex dynamics
  • additive manufacturing
  • superconducting thin films, conductors, cables, and magnets
  • multi-physics characterization
  • simulation and modelling approaches
  • quench detection and protection

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

20 pages, 3976 KB  
Article
Multiscale Mechanical Responses of the Racetrack NbTi Superconducting Coil Under Dynamic Pressures
by Wei Liu, Lianchun Wang, Peng Ma, Yong Li, Wentao Zhang, Peichang Yu, Qiang Chen, Yongbin Wang and Weiwei Zhang
Materials 2025, 18(17), 4072; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma18174072 - 30 Aug 2025
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Abstract
Racetrack NbTi superconducting coil is a key component in Maglev train systems due to its excellent mechanical processing performance and lower construction cost. However, dynamic pressures during high-speed operations can influence contact pressures and cause internal filament damage, leading to critical current degradation [...] Read more.
Racetrack NbTi superconducting coil is a key component in Maglev train systems due to its excellent mechanical processing performance and lower construction cost. However, dynamic pressures during high-speed operations can influence contact pressures and cause internal filament damage, leading to critical current degradation and quench, which threaten the stable operation of the superconducting magnet. Considering that the NbTi coil has a typical hierarchical structure and comprises thousands of filaments, this study constructs an efficient multiscale framework combining the finite element method (FEM) and self-consistent clustering analysis (SCA) to study the multiscale responses of the NbTi coil. The mechanical responses of the two-scale racetrack coil under monotonic and periodic pressures are investigated, and the effects of the friction contacts between strands are also discussed. The study reveals that internal contacts significantly influence local contact pressures and microscopic stresses, and periodic loading leads to stress accumulation with cycle times. The proposed framework efficiently captures critical microscale responses and can be applied to other multiscale materials and structures. Full article
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