High-temperature superconductors are recent innovations from scientific research laboratories. New commercial innovations begin with the existing technological knowledge generated by the research scientist. The work of commercialization centers on the development of new products and the engineering needed to implement the new technology. Superconductivity has had a long history as a specialized field of physics. Through the collaborative efforts of government funded research, independent research groups and commercial industries, applications of new high-temperature superconductors will be in the not so distant future.
Time lags however, between new discoveries and practical applications are often great.
The discovery of the laser in the early 60's has only recently been appreciated today through applications such as laser surgery, laser optical communication, and compact disc players. The rapid progress in the field of superconductivity leads one to believe that applications of superconductors is limited only by one's imagination and time. The table on the next page shows both present and potential applications of superconductors. As you can see application of superconductors is only just beginning.