Chinese scientists have created the world’s most powerful all-superconducting magnet, generating a magnetic field of 35.1 teslas. This is about 700,000 times stronger than Earth’s natural magnetic field. The Institute of Plasma Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences developed the device and kept it stable for thirty minutes before shutting it down safely, proving both its strength and reliability.
How Scientists Made It Possible
The researchers overcame immense engineering challenges to build this magnet. At such field strengths, magnets experience crushing mechanical forces, extreme stresses, and complex interactions between fields. To succeed, the team designed new superconducting materials and advanced cooling systems that kept the magnet operating at cryogenic temperatures. Their innovation now gives scientists a powerful tool to explore physics in regimes never before possible.
Why This Breakthrough Matters
This achievement does more than break records. Magnets of this kind play a vital role in fusion energy research, where extremely strong magnetic fields must confine plasma at temperatures hotter than the sun. With stronger magnets, reactors such as China’s EAST tokamak or international projects like ITER can confine plasma more effectively and for longer periods, bringing us closer to practical fusion power. Beyond fusion, this magnet also opens opportunities in advanced materials science, high-field MRI technology, and magnetic levitation transport.
A Step Toward Fusion Energy
China has already set records by running plasma experiments for over 1,000 seconds in its EAST reactor. By creating this new magnet, Chinese researchers have strengthened the country’s role in the global race for fusion energy. The world still faces major challenges in scaling these technologies, but this breakthrough shows how innovation can drive us closer to clean, limitless power.
