"The Cold Wars is an enormously informative history of the development of the fascinating subject of superconductivity. Non-experts and experts alike will find themselves absorbed by this elegant translation from the French original."--Elihu Abrahams, Rutgers University
Among the most peculiar of matter's behaviors is superconductivity--electric current without resistance. Since the 1986 discovery that superconductivity is possible at temperatures well above absolute zero, research into practical applications has flourished.
The Cold Wars tells the history of superconductivity, providing perspective on the development of the field and its relationship with the rest of physics. Superconductivity offers an excellent example of the evolution of physics in the twentieth century: the science itself, its foundations, and its social context. The authors also introduce the reader to the fascinating scientific personalities, including 2003 Nobel Prize winners Alexei Alexeievich Abrikosov and Vitali Ginzburg, and political struggles behind this research.
The Cold Wars will be of interest to students of physics and the history of science, and to general readers interested in the story behind this remarkable phenomenon.
