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Sheared Aluminum's Odd, Possibly Useful Behavior
Chiggy_Von_Richtoffe writes "Researchers at Ohio State University have turned up some interesting things about aluminum when sheared at the atomic leavel. Apparently it
mimics certain ceramics and semiconductors, as well as having a stronger shear-strength than copper. I can't wait until we can get all sorts of cool new toys from this vein of research."
at the atomic leavel ..
If it was hard to write it should be hard to read.
Scotty could have told 'em the about the formula for Transparent Aluminum.
Ever dream you could fly? Get up from the Flight Sim. I Fly
The name of the element is Aluminium
Sorry, but this just doesn't qualify as news. Science, yes. But even as science it's just another tiny step towards our nano-tech-utopia fantasy.
"A language that doesn't affect the way you think about programming, is not worth knowing" - Alan Perlis
so what kind of applications would this lead to? they talk about sheared aluminum having the same properties as ceramics.... making plates and cups out of sheared aluminum? or maybe a flywheel/clutch?
aluminum's low melting point seems to really hinder it's usefulness in ceramic applications, as one of ceramic's strong points is it's imperviousness to intense and prolonged heat.
moox. for a new generation.
Text taken from the article itself:
> Specifically, they studied a process known as pure shear strain, in which a layer of atoms slides over a second layer of atoms. The reliability and durability of very small electronic devices, in which temperatures fluctuations often cause materials to expand or contract, depends in part on how their components react to the effects of shear strain. The researchers determined that two layers of copper atoms typically slide over each other quite smoothly.
ok, so taking that into consideration it gives researchers a better idea of how to deal with the limitations of laying down circuitry as we approach Moore's wall.
~facists gotta love 'em, If you don't they shoot you!
Actually, it's officially the Ohio State University
"player 4 hit player 1 with 0 stroms"
Hey, that's what I did my PhD thesis work in! :-)
Aluminum is the largest component of the most easily formed
"quasicrystals", and this analysis seems to be yet another indication that the seemingly normal metal face-centered-cubic structure of alumnium is actually not very far removed from some quite strange states of matter. Further evidence is right there on the periodic table - gallium, just below Al, has one of the strangest ground-state structures of any metal, and melts at a balmy 35 degrees Celsius!
For those who have access, I actually wrote a paper on this over 10 years ago... ah the memories...
Energy: time to change the picture.
I am so tired that when I first read the article, I thought they interviewed a lithium about the subject. I was really starting to wonder what was wrong until I realized the researcher's name was Li...
What environment was this shearing done in and was the aluminium used pure? If it was done in a non-sterile environment, acidic particulates could have reacted with the momomolecular aluminium sheet. Assuming the alumininum was pure, they should have left a control which is a polymolecular block of the element, left in the shearing environment. That way they could check the top layer of the control and if any changes had occured, the top momomolecular layer, the experiement would have been invalid because a change would ahve occured in the momomolecular sheet. Aluminium is quite reactive so was an inert gas placed over the sample as it was sheared?... Otherwise it may have reacted or oxidised. It would require very little contamination to ruin the sheet since it is only one molecule thick.
"I can't give you a brain, so I'll give you a diploma" - The Great Oz (blatently stolen sig)