Michelle in MO Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 A single molecule has been pictured for the first time; you can read about it here. A few interesting clips from the article: Scientists from IBM used an atomic force microscope (AFM) to reveal the chemical bonds within a molecule. The researchers focused on a single molecule of pentacene, which is commonly used in solar cells. The rectangular-shaped organic molecule is made up of 22 carbon atoms and 14 hydrogen atoms. and In the image above the hexagonal shapes of the five carbon rings are clear and even the positions of the hydrogen atoms around the carbon rings can be seen. To give some perspective, the space between the carbon rings is only 0.14 nanometers across, which is roughly one million times smaller than the diameter of a grain of sand. 'If you think about how a doctor uses an X-ray to image bones and organs inside the human body, we are using the atomic force microscope to image the atomic structures that are the backbones of individual molecules,' said IBM researcher Gerhard Meyer. A 3D view showing how a single carbon monoxide molecule was used to create the image using a 'tuning fork' effect The team from IBM Research Zurich said the results could have a huge impact of the field of nanotechnology, which seeks to understand and control some of the smallest objects known to mankind. The AFM uses a sharp metal tip that acts like a tuning fork to measure the tiny forces between the tip and the molecule. This requires great precision as the tip moves within a nanometer of the sample. 'Above the skeleton of the molecular backbone (of the pentacene) you get a different detuning than above the surface the molecule is lying on,' Mr Gross said. This detuning is then measured and converted into an image. To stop the tip from absorbing the pentacene molecule, the researchers replaced the metal with a single molecule of carbon monoxide. This was found to be more stable and created weaker electrostatic attractions with the pentacene, creating a higher resolution image. I may send this to a friend of mine, who is also a chemist. Anyway, I thought this was extremely interesting, and hopefully it'll appeal to the rest of the moms on this board! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asta Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 When my son saw this on CNN, he started yelling "MOM MOM come quickly and see this!" We're such dorks in this house. a Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle in MO Posted August 30, 2009 Author Share Posted August 30, 2009 This is the right forum for dorks, nerds, and geeks---or, for those who are simply interested in a good education for themselves and their children! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 When my son saw this on CNN, he started yelling "MOM MOM come quickly and see this!" We're such dorks in this house. a LOL That's so us too! hehehehe I LOVE science and this kind of thing is really cool. What a great story, Michelle! Very cool stuff! Thanks so much for sharing it. This image in particular made me smile. I love how it takes something so huge to see something so small. :p Now that they have been sucessful with this first image, I'm sure we will see many more new and amazing things in the future. Such a fascinating world we live in. :) Jennifer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.