Chemistry   Tags: acs, chemistry, properties  

Photo: National Research Council of Canada.

This is the world's first image of 3D atomic-level structure as revealed by neutron holography. The bright blobs at the points of the two triangles represent oxygen atoms in the rare mineral simpsonite. To produce the image in 2001, NRC scientists fired neutrons into simpsonite. Its atomic crystal structure is based around a central hydrogen atom. The hydrogen atom scattered the neutrons, causing them to "light up" the atomic crystal structure from the inside, producing the hologram. The technique has great potential for studying the structure of complex, hydrogen-rich molecules, such as proteins.