RIAU24.COM – The new material was successfully developed by scientists from Yanshan University in China. This material is called AM-III and as scientists claim, it has outstanding mechanical and electronic properties.
Scientists also claim that AM-III has energy absorption properties similar to semiconductors used in solar cells such as hydrogenated amorphous silicon films.
Diamonds have a reputation for being one of the hardest materials known to man, however, now scientists in China have developed a glass material that can scratch diamond crystals easily.
The new material was developed by scientists from Yanshan University in China (study published in Oxford National Science Review). The new material, for now, is called AM-III and as the scientists claim, it has outstanding mechanical and electronic properties.
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This material has a hardness of 113 gigapascals (GPa). compared to this, diamonds come in at around 50 to 70 gigapascals. Scientists also claim that AM-III has energy absorption properties similar to semiconductors used in solar cells such as hydrogenated amorphous silicon films.
When looking at a diamond crystal, the internal structure of its atoms and molecules helps contribute to its known strength and hardness. However, in the case of AM-III, the molecules are arranged in a unique order which also gives it a rather strange property.
With the help of fullerenes — the arrangement of carbon atoms like soccer balls — researchers have produced various types of classy materials with different molecular structures. Of all of them, AM-III has the highest order of atoms and molecules.
The scientists were able to achieve this by crushing and mixing the fullerenes and applying heat, intense pressure — 1200 degrees Celsius at about 25 gigapascals — in an experimental chamber for 12 hours.
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The scientists also saw that if they increased the regularity even further, it would destroy semi-conductivity and other properties that make atoms and molecules haphazard.
The researchers in their study explain that this ultrahard semiconductor material can help in developing solar cells thanks to its strength and strong resistance to wear and tear.
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