For the first time, a single, twisted nanoparticle has been accurately measured and characterised in a lab, taking scientists one vital step closer to a time when medicines will be produced and blended on a microscopic scale.
Physicists at the University of Bath who study materials on the nanoscale – that is, molecules 10,000 smaller than a pinhead – made their groundbreaking observations using a new method for examining the shape of nanoparticles in 3D.
This technique, called the hyper-Rayleigh scattering optical activity (HRS OA) technique, was used to examine the structure of gold (among other materials), resulting in an exceptionally clear image of the ‘screw thread’ twist in the metal’s shape.
