China says US tried to buy superconductor magnet that ‘outperforms American ones by 40%’
The US Brookhaven National Laboratory has reportedly sought to purchase advanced superconducting magnet technology from China. Chinese researchers claim their magnets outperform American versions by 40%, highlighting a shift in global scientific leadership.
Why it matters
This reflects the intensifying technological competition between the US and China in high-end scientific infrastructure and dual-use research capabilities.
A US laboratory that once dominated the field of superconducting magnets is now hoping to buy Chinese technology used in a leading particle accelerator, official Chinese media reported on Tuesday.
The US Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory once “monopolised” this type of specialised technology, according to Science and Technology Daily.
But in May last year it contacted the Chinese Institute of High Energy Physics “hoping to purchase the Chinese-made combined superconducting magnet” – the type used in the Beijing Electron-Positron Collider’s latest upgrade.
There has been no indication that the US lab has acquired the magnet.
“We have proven that the Chinese are capable of competing head-to-head with the world’s best in cutting-edge fields of basic science, and can consistently win,” Yu Chenghui, chief operator of the collider, told the newspaper.
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