‘The season will be merry, and what better way to celebrate than relaxing a large Christmas tree in the living room?
One applied physics student from Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) in the Netherlands had a different view of what her Christmas tree would look like this year.
“Look, the smallest #ChristmasTree in the world!” read TU Delft mail on Twitter.
In fact, Maura Willems decided to create what could be the tiniest Christmas tree in the world.
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The equipment Willems used was much larger than the wood she eventually created. The complex device was a scanning tunneling microscope, which can scan individual atoms to build small structures.
He literally works one atom at a time to study the individual quantum-mechanical properties of each atom.
In the end, Willems had 51 “big” Christmas trees, which roughly translates to the size of a DNA chain. To give an idea, it’s about human hair It spreads 40,000 times. Let’s talk a little.
Willems wood was precise four nanometers high, or four millionths of a millimeter – without counting the roof of the tree.
Look, the smallest in the world # Christmas tree!! 🎄
It consists of 51 atoms which #physics student Maura Willems removed from the perfect crystal lattice. The tree is 4 millionths of a millimeter (4 nm) high (excluding the tree canopy). #tudelfthttps://t.co/6b2NmqezZF pic.twitter.com/4uE4RHVQOf– TU Delft (@tudelft) December 21, 2020
It’s fun to see how such complex devices build a cheerful creation like a Christmas tree. It may not be extremely useful, but there is little light physical fun.
There’s not a good chance you’ll be able to buy such a Christmas ball, but here’s a list of things you can buy this season if you’re looking for a little last-minute inspiration.