Hydrogen can be turned into metal, latest claims may be the most solid so far

In 1930, the possibility of turning hydrogen into a metal emerged for the first time. Recently, a trio of researchers claimed that this can be achieved by exposing the chemical element to high pressure. Here are the developments that have taken place in the story so far.

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Metallic hydrogen forms at a pressure of over 4 million times the earth’s atmosphere

According to reports, if confirmed, the achievement would fulfil the long-standing quest of producing the elusive metallic hydrogen. The study has been published online at www.arxiv.org. However, the work still has to pass through peer review.

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According to Alexander Goncharov of the Carnegie Institute of Science in Washington, the findings are a very substantial step ahead. Though he was not involved in the study, he thinks that it is quite conclusive that it is metallic.

While Alexander Goncharov is positive about the study, other scientists are sceptical about it. Eugene Gregoryanz, Physicist at the University of Edinburgh, has made a statement that he does not find the study convincing enough. He also noted that many studies and previous claims about metallic hydrogen have been proven wrong in the end.

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Metallic hydrogen is of particular interests to scientists and physicists around the world because of the claims that it might act as a superconductor. However, while other known superconductors need to be cooled down to extremely low temperatures, metallic hydrogen would prove to be a superconductor at room temperature.

For the unversed, a superconductor is a metal that allows electricity to flow without any resistance. According to experts, if metallic hydrogen and other such elements are proved to exist, they could be integrated into electronics and used to save vast amounts of energy.

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For the creation of metallic hydrogen, Loubeyre and his colleagues squeezed hydrogen gas between two diamonds. An improved setup with diamonds etched into the shape of doughnuts was used by the researchers to expose hydrogen gas to higher amounts of pressure. Using a powerful source of light called the synchrotron, the team sent infrared light through the diamonds to squeeze the hydrogen gas. During the study, as the physicists ratcheted up the pressure, hydrogen gas suddenly became opaque to light as a sign of its transition to metal.

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