Wonder how this will play in a lead-free world?...   ;-)
 
 
ULTRA-THIN LEAD
A superconducting sheet of lead only two atoms thick  - the thinnest
superconducting metal layer ever created - has been  developed by
physicists at The University of Texas at Austin. Superconductors  are
unique because they can maintain an electrical current  indefinitely,
with no power source. They are used in MRI machines,  particle
accelerators, and quantum interference devices.

In  superconductors, electrons move through the material together in
pairs,  called Cooper pairs. One of the innovative properties of the new
ultra-thin  lead is that it confines the electrons to move in two
dimensions - or one  "quantum channel" - like ballroom dancers gliding
across the floor. The lead  remains a good superconductor despite the
constrained movement of the  electrons through the metal.

The physicists used advanced materials  synthesis techniques to lay the
two-atom thick sheet of lead atop a thin  silicon surface. The lead
sheets are highly uniform with no impurities. "We  can make this film,
and it has perfect crystalline structure-more perfect  than most thin
films made of other materials," said Dr. Ken Shih, a professor  of
physics. The development of the thin superconducting sheets of  lead
lays the groundwork for future advancements in  superconductor
technologies.

Read the full story here:  http://link.abpi.net/l.php?20090611A2
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