Superconductors allow electricity to flow without energy loss, but conventional superconductors require ultra-low temperatures to function. MIT physicists have made progress in studying “unconventional” superconductors that might operate at higher temperatures. Their recent work with “magic-angle” twisted tri-layer graphene (MATTG) provides strong evidence for unconventional superconductivity. This material is created by stacking three layers of graphene at a precise angle, leading to unique electronic properties. The researchers measured MATTG's superconducting gap, which indicates how robust its superconducting state is at different temperatures. They found that MATTG’s superconducting gap differs significantly from those of typical superconductors, suggesting a different and unconventional underlying mechanism. Shuwen Sun, a co-author of the study, emphasized the significance of the superconducting gap in understanding the conditions that could lead to room-temperature superconductors. Using a novel experimental setup, the team combined electron tunneling with electrical transport to observe the superconducting gap in real-time. This allowed them to confirm superconductivity in MATTG with zero electrical resistance, a key hallmark of superconductors. The gap exhibited a distinct V-shaped profile, unlike the flat shapes seen in conventional superconductors, pointing to an unconventional pairing mechanism among electrons. While the exact nature of this mechanism remains unclear, the findings could guide future research into room-temperature superconductors and other advanced technologies.