China has launched the world’s most powerful magnet for scientific research
- Facility is not much bigger than a coin but it can create a stable magnetic field of 45.22 tesla – over a million times stronger than that of the Earth
- Team at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ High Magnetic Field Laboratory achieved their goal after making ‘major technological breakthrough’
China on Friday launched the world’s most powerful magnet for scientific research at a laboratory in the southeastern city of Hefei, in Anhui province.
The magnetic field facility is not much bigger than a coin, with a diameter of 33mm. But the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ High Magnetic Field Laboratory says it can create a stable magnetic field as strong as 45.22 tesla – or over a million times stronger than that of the Earth.
“[The Hefei facility] has become the highest steady-state magnetic field that can support scientific research in the world,” the laboratory said in a statement.
“The original world record was created by the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in the United States in 1999. Its hybrid magnet generated 450,000 gauss [45 tesla] and it has held the record for 23 years,” it added.
Researchers at the US facility did produce a 45.5-tesla field in 2019, but the result was achieved on a test magnet that was not being used for scientific experiments.
Generating such a powerful magnetic field is challenging, partly because it requires a huge amount of energy, and the force is strong enough to lift an aircraft carrier.