Steps up the ladder to superconductivity. (ladder made from copper, lanthanum and copper atoms produces some signs of being able to conduct electricity)(Brief Article) From: Science News | Date: September 16, 1995| Author: Peterson, Ivars | COPYRIGHT 1995 Science Service, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.Copyright information

Ladder compounds--chains of atoms connected by atomic rungs--have a simplicity and symmetry that make them useful structures for studying how the spins of atoms in a material interact to produce an electric conductor or even a superconductor.

More often than not, however, such handy arrangements of atoms are just hypothetical structures created by theorists to clarify their ideas and make predictions. Now, researchers have synthesized a particular ladder structure made of co...