Home > News > Making snowflakes or "snowfakes"?
January 31st, 2008
Making snowflakes or "snowfakes"?
Abstract:
Q: What's the point of making a snowflake generator?
A: There is the intellectual challenge, following in the footsteps of Johannes Kepler and others who have wondered about snowflakes, but there are plenty of applications. Crystal growth is a multi-billion dollar industry, and it shows the same sort of dynamics as snow crystal growth. Many metal alloys have a similar structure at the surface, and we are convinced that the same methods used to simulate ice crystals can be applied to them. Another application is self-assembly in nanotechnology, trying to figure out chemical or biological processes that will makes tiny structures with less effort. But I like to study snowflakes as wonders of nature.
Source:
whyfiles.org
Bookmark:
News and information
Aspen Aerogels Announces $22.5 Million Private Placement May 18th, 2013
NanoInk, Inc. Assets To Be Sold May 18th, 2013
Beautiful "flowers" self-assemble in a beaker: Elaborate nanostructures blossom from a chemical reaction perfected at Harvard May 17th, 2013
Scientists capture first direct proof of Hofstadter butterfly effect May 17th, 2013
Interviews/Book Reviews/Essays/Reports/Podcasts/Journals
Moth-Inspired Nanostructures Take the Color Out of Thin Films May 17th, 2013
Add boron for better batteries: Rice University theorists say graphene-boron mix shows promise for lithium-ion batteries May 17th, 2013
DNA-Guided Assembly Yields Novel Ribbon-Like Nanostructures: Approach could be useful in fabricating new kinds of materials with engineered properties May 16th, 2013
Advancements and developments of solid-state nanopores sensors May 16th, 2013
Human Interest/Art
Oh, Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree: A nano end for Christmas tree needles January 2nd, 2013
INIC Inks MoU to Apply Nanotechnology in Iran's Carpet Industry December 18th, 2012
IBN Welcomes Its First 9-Year-Old ‘Scientist’: IBN and Make-A-Wish Foundation Singapore Make Kidney Patient’s Dream Come True December 10th, 2012
The music of the silks: Researchers synthesize a new kind of silk fiber — and find that music can help fine-tune the material’s properties November 28th, 2012