Microsoft is currently looking at high-temperature superconductors (HTS) for transmitting the massive amounts of electricity that it needs for its data centers. According to the company blog, since superconductors have zero resistance, adoption of that exotic tech would mean that the HTS cables would not suffer voltage drops or generate heat as electricity travels through them.
The advantages of HTS cables means that they can be lighter and take up less space compared to traditional copper and aluminum wires. For example, overhead lines typically need 70 meters of space to prevent the electrical fields of the individual cables from interfering with each other, among other reasons. HTS cables, on the other hand, only requires a 2-meter-wide trench.
