We’ve discovered a 'double' version of superconductivity where electrons move in groups of four instead of pairs.
April 17, 2026
Original Paper
High-temperature charge-4e superconductivity in SU(4) interacting fermions
arXiv · 2604.15056
The Takeaway
Since the 1950s, the 'law' of superconductivity has been that electrons must bond into 'Cooper pairs' to move through a material without resistance. But scientists just proved that under specific conditions, electrons can form 'quartets' (charge-4e), creating a brand-new state of matter. This high-temperature phase is much more robust than the standard version, challenging the very foundation of how we thought electricity could flow. It’s like discovering that instead of just dancing in pairs, people can form a high-speed kickline that moves through a crowd even faster. This could eventually lead to power grids that lose zero energy or maglev trains that are far easier to maintain.
From the abstract
The condensation of electron quartets, known as charge-4e superconductivity (SC), represents a novel quantum state of matter beyond the standard paradigm of Cooper pairing. However, concrete microscopic models realizing this phase in two dimensions remain a central challenge. Here, we introduce a non-engineered and sign-problem-free model, unambiguously demonstrating the emergence of a robust and high-temperature charge-4e SC phase using unbiased quantum Monte Carlo simulations. At zero temperat