Shaking up Nanoparticles
Tiny brass spheres only 120 microns across form a variety of patterns
when they are agitated in fluids trapped between glass slides. Rather
than mechanically shaking the particles, the researchers applied an
electric field to the slides, which caused the particles to bounce back
and forth between the slides. The patterns that result resemble those
formed in shaken containers of sand, ball bearings, and other large
granular materials. In effect, the particles self-assemble in ways that
may allow us to create novel and useful nanoscale structures for tiny
electrical or mechanical components.
