By connecting more than 64 computers together into a supercomputer, U associate professor of materials science and engineering Feng Liu proved a microscope could capture images of atoms and their “wings.”
His study was recently accepted for publication in Physical Review Letters journal and will help scientists better understand the bonds between atoms, which can aid in the development of stronger materials and machines.
With the help of the supercomputer, Liu showed images of electrons as they made wing-shaped orbital paths around atoms.
Although other scientists have attempted this previously, their work was considered inconclusive. Liu claimed his research does “not assume how the atoms interact with each other. It solves them exactly.”
This proof led to the publication of his work in what Liu called “the most prestigious journal in all the fields of physics.”
To better explain his research, Liu said an atomic force microscope is used to “map out surface images of an atom.” An atom has rapidly moving electrons surrounding it, which can look like wings.
With the supercomputer-which simulates an atomic force microscope-and after six months of calculations, Liu was rewarded with an image of an atom and its orbiting electrons.
The images can help industries design better metals and machines in the future by helping to reveal defects in industrial materials.
“When there is a defect, the remaining atoms around the defect will rearrange themselves. The study will help us see how atoms bond around defect sites. This is important, because surface defects play an important role in the growth of new materials,” Liu said.
According to Liu, his research can help scientists construct materials and machines “atom by atom…If we can see not only atoms but also their atomic orbital, it will assist us to assemble them on surface the way we want.”
The point of controversy in previous studies was the question of whether the atomic force microscope was completely accurate. Because Liu used a supercomputer to simulate the microscope, he claimed he calculated the bond between atoms without using approximations, proving atoms can be imaged.