---
title: "The Claim of a Room Temperature Superconductor Is Starting to Look Fishy"
description: "More researchers are piling on, burying the potentially revolutionary discovery of a room-temperature superconductor in skepticism."
date: "2023-08-09"
modified: "2023-08-09"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/room-temperature-superconductor-fishy"
categories:
  - "Physics"
  - "Science & Energy"
tags:
  - "physics"
  - "research"
  - "superconductor"
  - "the digest"
---

# The Claim of a Room Temperature Superconductor Is Starting to Look Fishy

![More researchers are piling on, burying the potentially revolutionary discovery of a room-temperature superconductor in skepticism.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/scandal-overtake-claim-room-temperature-superconductor.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Getty Images\</em\>*

## Science Scandal

Researchers at South Korea’s Quantum Energy Research Centre [made a huge splash](<https://futurism.com/claim-room-temperature-superconductor-tearing-apart>) when they announced a few weeks back that they'd accomplished a potentially groundbreaking first: a "room-temperature ambient pressure superconductor."

In simple terms, superconductors can conduct electricity without any loss of energy. Conventionally, they need to be cooled to cryogenic temperatures or subjected to immense pressure.

But a new lead-based material dubbed LK-99, as detailed in the [pair of](<https://arxiv.org/pdf/2307.12037.pdf>) [yet-to-be-peer-reviewed papers](<https://arxiv.org/pdf/2307.12008.pdf>), is meant to change all that, exhibiting what its creators say is perfect conductivity at temperatures up to a blistering 260 degrees Fahrenheit. It can even purportedly levitate above a permanent magnet, a telltale sign that it could be a superconductor.

The controversial research sparked plenty of criticism, with experts pointing out that such an extraordinary claim required extraordinary evidence — which simply hasn't materialized yet.

And more and more researchers are piling on, [*Science* reports](<https://www.science.org/content/article/short-spectacular-life-viral-room-temperature-superconductivity-claim>), the potentially revolutionary discovery is quickly being enveloped by a thick blanket of skepticism.

Is LK-99 too good to be true? If it holds up, the material could usher in a new era of levitating vehicles, vastly improve the efficiency of power grids, and more. But given the growing amount of evidence to the contrary, it's more likely that we're looking at a scandal — and not a glimpse into the future.

## Fishy Data

For one, experts say the data was presented in a haphazard and unconvincing way.

The two papers' authors "come off as real amateurs," Michael Norman, a theorist at Argonne National Laboratory, told *Science*. "They don’t know much about superconductivity and the way they’ve presented some of the data is fishy."

"I appreciate that the authors took appropriate data and were clear about their fabrication techniques," added Nadya Mason, a condensed matter physicist at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. But the "data seems a bit sloppy," she told *Science*.

Shortly after the two papers were published, reports emerged that they had been "[published without permission](<https://www.asiafinancial.com/korea-superconductor-papers-published-without-consent-yonhap#:~:text=%E2%80%9CProfessor%20Kwon%20arbitrarily%20published%20%5Bthe,on%20one%20of%20the%20papers.>)," indicating that the original authors didn't intend to publish them in the first place.

Meanwhile, [over a dozen preprints](<https://arxiv.org/find/cond-mat/1/OR+OR+abs:+AND+lead+apatite+abs:+EXACT+lk_99+abs:+Pb10xCuxPO46O/0/1/0/all/0/1>) have been shared on *arXiv*, theorizing about the existence of LK-99 and its purported ability to perfectly conduct electricity.

The outcomes vary significantly, as *Science* points out, from one team arguing the material would need to be even cooler than other conventional superconductors, while others hinted at the material's potential.

It's a growing scandal that has divided much of the scientific community. And until we see an independent verification of the researchers' data, we can only guess as to where the conversation will go next.

But given the increasingly predominant air of skepticism, we're not overly optimistic.

**More on the discovery:** *[Claim of "Room-Temperature" Superconductor Is Tearing the Scientific World Apart](<https://futurism.com/claim-room-temperature-superconductor-tearing-apart>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)