The meissner effect?

Question

ok, so, i just heard about the meissner effect, and its very interesting. i jread a bunch about out it, but its all very very technical and hard to understand. can someone put it in lame man's terms for me? and, what do you need to do the experiment? thanks.

Answer 1

A magnetic field can't penetrate a superconductor.  If you bring the north pole of a magnet near a superconductor, it induces electric currents.  Those currents create a magnetic field that makes the superconductor 'look' like another north pole, so they repel.  Under the right conditions, that repulsion is enough to levitate a permanent magnet.

You need a superconducting material, a way to cool it below its critical temperature (like liquid nitrogen), and a strong permanent magnet shaped so it will be stable when levitated.  That's why the usually use flat ones as in the photo in the reference.