University of Cambridge researchers have discovered that a material already known for its peculiar electrical properties appears to behave as both a conductor and an insulator at the same time. This ...

Cambridge researchers have identified a material that behaves as both a conductor and an insulator. The material, samarium hexaboride (SmB6), acts like an insulator in certain measurements, but ...

The performance of an object that has been dependent upon whether the object is composed of a conductive or a nonconductive material. Conductors are materials that allow electrons to flow freely from ...

Normally metals and insulators sit at opposite ends of a spectrum of conductivity, but researchers have discovered a material that can switch between those states freely, even at room temperature. The ...

More efficient computers and other devices often begin with new materials. One promising option is vanadium dioxide, which rapidly transforms from an insulator to a conductor in femtoseconds.

The electronic energy states allowed by quantum mechanics determine whether a solid is an insulator or whether it conducts electric current as a metal. Researchers have now theoretically predicted a ...

Plastics are excellent insulators, meaning they efficiently trap heat—a quality that is an advantage in something such as a coffee cup sleeve. But this insulating property is less desirable in ...

We’re surrounded by electrically powered devices these days. From our lights, to our kettles, and of course our phones! Electricity flows through copper or aluminium wire to power or charge all of ...