Multimedia Gallery
September 24, 2012
Videos credited to the National Science Foundation, an agency of the U.S. Government, may be distributed freely. However, some materials within the videos may be copyrighted. If you would like to use portions of NSF-produced programs in another product, please contact the Video Team in the Office of Legislative and Public Affairs at the National Science Foundation.
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This video shows how the crystal "heals" itself when another particle is inserted.
This video shows a representation of the hexagonal crystal pattern that naturally occurs when the crystalline structure is formed. But the regular six-sided pattern doesn't fit perfectly around the spherical droplet, so defects also appear. Researchers found that inserting an interstitial particle (black) causes rearrangements to the lattice that allow the defect to "heal."
The stresses caused by the extra particle can be seen in the creation of yellow and red shapes, which indicate particles coordinated with either five or seven others, as opposed to the normal six others.
Credit: William Irvine, University of Chicago
Videos credited to the National Science Foundation, an agency of the U.S. Government, may be distributed freely. However, some materials within the videos may be copyrighted. If you would like to use portions of NSF-produced programs in another product, please contact the Video Team in the Office of Legislative and Public Affairs at the National Science Foundation.
Additional information about general usage can be found in Conditions.
Related story: Self-healing Curved Crystals