This invention is a method of creating an electromagnet, using a partially slit high-Tc super-conducting (HTS) tape (e.g. coated conductor on a flexible metal substrate), which circumvents the need for resistive joints. The magnet could be operated in a persistent current mode, using any of several flux-pumping methods to ramp the current and magnetic field up to, and maintain, the operational mode, which would enable improved stability for various applications. These include: nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), large-scale electric motors and generators, superconducting magnetic energy storage, MAGLEV trains, and high-field magnets for particle accelerators and compact fusion reactors.