by Playfuls Staff |
6th February 2007
Dutch researchers have used a high resolution
electron microscope to observe, in real-time, the collective transportation of
gold atoms in a thin layer.[more]
The scientists at the Delft University of Technology
say their study illustrates the rapid progress currently being made by
real-time nanomicroscopy.
In the study at the university's Kavli Institute of
Nanoscience, a small group of gold atoms was placed on a gold surface. The
researchers then used a high resolution electron microscope to show in
real-time how the atoms collectively sank into the underlying layer of atoms
and then became arranged in the shape of a surface dislocation, which is an
extra row of atoms that is "squeezed" between the other rows of
atoms.
At a later stage, the dislocation disappears as if a
string of beads has been pulled away lengthwise. According to Professor Henny
Zandbergen, that is the first time such a phenomenon has been observed in
real-time.
The scientists say within 5 years, their research
should result in opening a wealth of possibilities for the medical world, as
well as industry.
The study appears in the journal Physical Review
Letters.
© 2007 UPI
