kurt@tc.fluke.COM (Kurt Guntheroth) (11/09/87)
1. Computation: A fully superconducting chip is limited in capactiy only
by the density with which components can be laid out. There will be no
problem with the thing getting hot and melting down. A superconducting
nonvloatile RAM may also be possible. Computers will be much faster,
smaller, and generally more powerful.
2. Power distribution: Power distribution will be more efficient. I think
about 10% overall. That's 10% less demand for nuclear plants just on
that one point. There is also some hope for superconducting power
storage rings too. This will reduce the peak demand for power
generation, which also reduces the need for power plants. What about
superconducting transformers?
3. Transportation: Mag-Lev trains are supposed to be efficient. But
that's the small part of it. High torque, light weight electric motors
of all sizes would be possible. The electric car may finally be a
reality. There are also millions of tiny motors everywhere that may
benefit from supercondoctivity even if the attainable current density
isn't high enough for big motors. How about "bionics?"
In the electricity business, superconductivity means power savings of 10 to
40 per cent. Tell me this won't be a revolution. Even if all we get is
liquid-nitrogen-cooled superconducting computers, which seems the most
attainable superconducting technology, the data processing industry will be
turned upside down.henry@utzoo.UUCP (Henry Spencer) (11/20/87)
> ... A fully superconducting chip is limited in capactiy only > by the density with which components can be laid out. There will be no > problem with the thing getting hot and melting down... Sorry, not true. For one thing, superconductors have zero resistance only for DC, not for signals that change. For another thing, switching devices generally dissipate heat when they switch. Cooling was one of the bigger problems with Josephson Junction technology in the liquid-helium days, not in the sense of getting stuff down to those temperatures but in the sense of keeping it there when it was generating substantial amounts of heat. Superconductors certainly *help*, potentially a lot, but they aren't a magic way around the heat problem. -- Those who do not understand Unix are | Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology condemned to reinvent it, poorly. | {allegra,ihnp4,decvax,utai}!utzoo!henry