![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080920110205im_/http://nsf.gov/images/x.gif) News From the Field 'Cooper Pairs' Can Be Found in Insulators as Well as in Superconductors
![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080920110205im_/http://nsf.gov/images/greenlineshort2.jpg)
November 22, 2007
![chemistry and materials graphic](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080920110205im_/http://nsf.gov/news/other_images/1chem_l.gif) | Fifty years ago, three physicists unveiled their BCS theory of superconductivity, which explained how currents of electrons can flow perpetually if they join in pairs. Those physicists, including Leon Cooper at Brown University, won a Nobel Prize for their work. Now, Brown physicists have shown something surprising: the formation of Cooper pairs can not only help electric current to flow, but it can also block that current. Their research appears in Science. Full story |
Source Brown University ![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080920110205im_/http://nsf.gov/images/bluefadesm.jpg)
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering, with an annual budget of $6.06 billion. NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to over 1,900 universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives about 45,000 competitive requests for funding, and makes over 11,500 new funding awards. NSF also awards over $400 million in professional and service contracts yearly.
 Get News Updates by Email 
Useful NSF Web Sites:
NSF Home Page: http://www.nsf.gov
NSF News: http://www.nsf.gov/news/
For the News Media: http://www.nsf.gov/news/newsroom.jsp
Science and Engineering Statistics: http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/
Awards Searches: http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/
|