A Quasi-Quasicrystal

An anonymous reader sends along a link to a mindbending article in Science News on quasicrystals — odd materials with a structure partway between order and disorder. Now researchers have found something even odder: a material that's partway between a quasicrystal and a regular crystal. The order in the new structure is provided by the Fibonacci sequence. It was constructed with plastic beads and laser beams, so no new materials science inventions are on the horizon. "'We are absolutely sure that this structure should have properties that are not usual,' Mikhael says, because materials with odd structures almost always do. Now they just have to figure out what those properties are."

Comments

Re:Anyone else find that quote hilarious?

[Anonymous Coward]

Seriously, though, I'd rather hear about what interesting/new discoveries come out of this strange material than just hear about the possibility of its existence.

... Then you should try a news site that deals with less than the latest science news.

Re:Penrose tiling?

[feranick]

Because it's one of the several possible tiling, and it's not exclusive. In other words, there are other tilings that fit specific type of quasicrystals. There is no reason to pick Penrose's one. What has been found in TFA, is more general. In fact the tiling in this system is very different from any other, since it is somewhat an hybrid between a conventional quasicrystal and a crystal. Why are you all so obsessed with Penrose's tiling?

Name?

[Anonymous Coward]

Quasiquasicrystal doesn't roll of the tongue...

Quasi is roughly the same as almost, right?

What is the latin equivalent of "Barely"?

Re:Anyone else find that quote hilarious?

[crovira]

No.

But the Fibonacci sequence is fascinating.

This material is definitely odd. (Lets hope it can be related down atomic scale.)

The reason it makes a good insulator is the Fibonacci gaps. They make for discrete jumps like quantum jumps because there is no smooth path for electron 'energy bands' to follow.