China has set a new world benchmark with the development of a powerful 42-tesla resistive magnet. The country has broken the previous 41.4-tesla record maintained by the United States since 2017. The breakthrough was achieved on September 22 by the High Magnetic Field Laboratory at the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Sciences. After years of research and improvements to the magnet’s structure, this development in magnetic field technology places China among the leaders in high-field magnet science, offering new tools for scientific and material research.
A Major Technological Leap in Magnetism
The 42-tesla resistive magnet, driven by a power source of 32.3 MW, is a proof to China’s engineering capabilities in this field. This achievement by the Hefei lab follows their earlier accomplishment with the world’s strongest hybrid magnet, which reached 45.22 teslas in 2022. The innovation reflects structural and production advancements made over nearly four years of continuous effort. It resulted in the output being, a magnet capable of maintaining a steady, strong magnetic field. This enables a range of scientific applications that rely on high magnetic fields for research and discovery.
Supporting High-Level Scientific Research
The new resistive magnet provides an advanced tool for scientific investigations, enabling researchers to explore materials and phenomena at extreme magnetic fields. According to Guanli Kaung, academic director at CHMFL, magnetic fields of this strength are essential for investigating fundamental properties of materials, often leading to discoveries in physics and chemistry that have real-world applications. High-field magnets are critical tools for researchers, allowing them to delve into questions of material behaviour and atomic interaction.
China’s Position in Global High Magnetic Field Research
China joins the ranks of five other nations, including France, Japan, the Netherlands, and the US, in hosting dedicated high-magnetic-field research labs. With several Nobel Prize-winning breakthroughs emerging from research under extreme magnetic conditions, the field continues to be a focal point for advanced scientific research. China’s latest record illustrates its commitment to expanding the potential of magnetic science, setting a high bar for future developments in the field