Accidental synthesis of a previously unknown quasicrystal in the first atomic bomb test
| Autor: | Paul J. Steinhardt, William P. Kolb, Terry C. Wallace, Luca Bindi, Paul D. Asimow, G. Nelson Eby |
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| Rok vydání: | 2021 |
| Předmět: |
0303 health sciences
Multidisciplinary Materials science Trinitite Icosahedral symmetry Quasicrystal Distinctive property 010502 geochemistry & geophysics 01 natural sciences Astrobiology 03 medical and health sciences Extant taxon Meteorite Physical Sciences 030304 developmental biology 0105 earth and related environmental sciences |
| Zdroj: | Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A |
| ISSN: | 1091-6490 0027-8424 |
| DOI: | 10.1073/pnas.2101350118 |
| Popis: | The first test explosion of a nuclear bomb, the Trinity test of 16 July 1945, resulted in the fusion of surrounding sand, the test tower, and copper transmission lines into a glassy material known as “trinitite.” Here, we report the discovery, in a sample of red trinitite, of a hitherto unknown composition of icosahedral quasicrystal, Si(61)Cu(30)Ca(7)Fe(2). It represents the oldest extant anthropogenic quasicrystal currently known, with the distinctive property that its precise time of creation is indelibly etched in history. Like the naturally formed quasicrystals found in the Khatyrka meteorite and experimental shock syntheses of quasicrystals, the anthropogenic quasicrystals in red trinitite demonstrate that transient extreme pressure–temperature conditions are suitable for the synthesis of quasicrystals and for the discovery of new quasicrystal-forming systems. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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