Detect extremely rare crystals in meteorites in Russia

Because it is a material originating from the universe, it is not only rare but it also has a very special crystal structure, unlike any other element on Earth.

Geologists have discovered an extremely rare crystalline substance in a meteorite sample found in Russia and this is the third time we are fortunate to find this crystal sample in nature.

Because it is a material originating from the universe, it is not only rare but it also has a very special crystal structure, unlike any other element on Earth.

For more than a decade since its first appearance, its structure is still a hot topic and controversial.

This semi-crystalline specimen was discovered by a group of geologists from the University of Florence, Italy. The team analyzed a meteorite that fell into the Khatyrka region of the Russian Far East five years ago and discovered the presence of semi-crystals with a width of only a few micrometers.

Extremely rare crystals are found in meteorites falling in Russia.

This is the third crystal sold found in meteorites that have been analyzed, proving that there is still more somewhere out there and will even have a more special structure.

"The special thing is, we have found three different types of crystalline selling on the same meteorite and the last time there was a chemical composition that was first known for a semi-crystalline. This prove that there are still many mysteries that we have not yet discovered, there may be many more semi-crystalline substances that will be found in the near future " - Paul Steinhardt from Princeton University, member of the research team share.

Crystal selling is a form of matter with a very special atomic structure, which includes the symmetry of a crystal with the asymmetry of amorphous matter.

Ordinary crystals such as snowflakes, table salt, diamonds . have symmetrical structures that are almost perfect. Chain-link crystals consist of most metals, stones, and ice with random and scattered crystal structures. And amorphous solids such as glass, plastic, wax .

In 1982, Jewish chemist Daniel Shechtman theorized about another form of existence of atomic structure that exists in nature - a special structure, semi-shaped with atomic structure. Do not repeat no matter what direction you look at.

Semi-crystalline structure.

Until he found himself on a sample of synthetic materials in the lab, he had to say "Eyn kao", meaning "It can't be out of nature".

Shechtman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this study in 2011 after decades of suspicion and ridicule because of this crazy assumption.

The reason why crystal semifinals become so special is because for more than two centuries of modern science, the symmetry of atomic structure is an unwritten rule.

Before the discovery of semi-crystalline substances, science still believes that the atomic structure is repeated and symmetrical in 1 of 4 types: Double repeat, 3 repeat (3 edges), 4 repeat (4 sides) or 6 (6-sided) repeat. And the semi-crystalline substance when discovered has broken this rule because they have crystal structures with 5-fold symmetrical symmetry.

"We often choose to bathe the bathroom with perfect tightness, we can only choose triangular, rectangular, square or hexagonal pads because other shapes will leave a larger gap." - Pat Theil, A senior expert at Ames Laboratory, the US Department of Energy simply explained about the symmetric arrangement of atoms.

5-sided structure of semi-crystal.

The semi-crystalline substance is like a pentagon, it cannot be perfectly assembled like a square or a rectangle, however, other atomic structures will move to fill that gap.

Because the crystalline substance is extremely rare on earth, there have been many studies to reproduce and produce this material in the laboratory and initially have certain applications from non-stick pans to LEDs. .

When analyzing the composition of a semi-crystalline substance, scientists determined that inside it was composed of groups, copper, and iron atoms, all arranged together as pieces cupping on a ball.

This discovery of crystal semi will open many new mysteries about the vast universe as well as the ability to find new sources of materials superior to the future.