The most sensitive sensor in the world

Scientists at the Catalan Institute of Nanotechnology in Spain have successfully tested the world's most sensitive sensor capable of measuring the mass of a proton particle in a vacuum.

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Previously, the world's most sensitive sensors could only detect objects with a minimum mass of 100 yoctograms, equivalent to one tenth of a zyogram (yoctogram is the smallest unit of measurement.) 1 yoctogram = 10 -24 grams).

Recently, researcher Adrian Bachtold and colleagues at the Catalan Institute of Nanotechnology in Spain created the short tube nanotube device with the best resolution, working in a low temperature environment. The device measured a proton particle weight of 1.7 yoctogram. This is the only case so far.

Although this experiment was conducted in a vacuum environment to minimize the interference of other atoms. But researchers hope to produce nanosensors of this kind at low cost.

At the same time, the researchers hope to be able to apply the world's most sensitive sensor to distinguish different elements in chemical samples in just a few proton units. And use it to diagnose health conditions in medicine by identifying signs of disease in molecules at the proton level.