Why glass is so fragile? What if the glass doesn’t go hard blow cracked but it should be no more than a small dent like metal?

These questions looking for answers researcher dr. Erkka Frankberg , who said he was above all a problem solver. Frankberg was led by an international team of researchers has managed to make glass, which can stretch and press together at room temperature without going broke.

Earlier were not able to demonstrate that the glass can behave in a metal way. Researchers ‘ observation of the glass venyvyydestä is so revolutionary that the result is published in the prestigious Science-scientific journal.

aluminum oxide made of glass is ordinary glass ten times harder and still terästäkin many times harder. The material of the raw materials on our planet is abundant and the potential uses are unlimited.

however, the Investigation has only just begun.

we’ve opened up the game. I hope other scientists interested in and begin to explore the topic, Frankberg said.

Glass is a material familiar, but still unknown

the Windows, dishes, cell phone screens, bottles, mirror surfaces – in relation to how the essential material for glass is in our daily lives, that we know surprisingly little.

It’s the materials, maybe it’s less known, said currently in Milan, Istituto Italiano di tecnologias working in Frankberg.

He has done a tenacious fundamental research in glass the bouquet for a number of years. Curiosity is the main motive.

It’s always hope that could happen something unexpected. Often that does not happen, but we’ll find something really interesting.

aluminum oxide is a glass manufacturing technique is quite difficult and still in experimental stage. Now be prepared only after a lot of hair, but thinner membranes, which in this sample is attached to a thicker substrate on top.Kirsi Matson-Mäkelä / Yle

Frankberg remember vividly a moment when he saw through the illumination of the electron microscope screen for the first time glass would stretch.

– Atoms are able to move the glass inside. The fact that elongation was born.

the Traditional window glass consists essentially of piioksidista. It will break easily because of the material’s atoms are unable to move under pressure. Or of course, atoms are moving the glass in preparation for the intense heat, but not at room temperature. The alumina in the movement and therefore the material has a lot of the usual glass tougher.

But isn’t any material break in the end, if the voltage is constantly growing?

Yes and no.

When the atoms are set in motion in the material before the tensile strength, the tension will no longer increase, but will stabilize, Frankberg explain.

still Need other breakthroughs

the researchers, manufacturers of stretch glass aluminum oxide using a laser. The method is tricky. Manufacturer requires, that thousands of degrees of hot material is cooled very quickly. The used technology is not entirely new, but still in a quite experimental stage.

so far been able to do just a hair to much thinner membranes.

Glass stretching of the condition is that it is very uniform in quality and free from error. When we increase the glass thickness, it is much more likely that we cause some error during manufacturing.

aluminum oxide was prepared in a glass for the study in Milan. In pulsed laser in the upbringing of a powerful laser beam to disperse the crystalline alumina (left) into a plasma, which appears as a bright violet light. The Plasma cools rapidly as they smashed into the platform (right). Thus was born the glass-like aluminum oxide.Erkka Frankberg

frankberg I needed a breakthrough also in manufacturing technology before we can take advantage of the new material properties industrially. In addition, the material should still prove to be functional and useful for people.

problem resolution call themselves the Frankberg up, however, for many potential uses stretched for the glass.

in Italy is currently being investigated as to whether aluminum oxide glass used in nuclear power plants protection material. This would prevent, for example, the Fukushima-like accidents.

If the cell phone screen should be more durable the glass, many of the everyday life easier. The new material can be utilized also for example in space.

– This can be used in space solar panel protection material, in which case they would bear of small meteoroids of the attacks.

the plastic for the glass may in the future find many uses for, which we now can’t even think of. Inventions can arise, for example, machine construction, battery technology, or renewable energy production.

Because of the stretchy glass is commonplace?

Urjala-born and Tampere argued Erkka Frankberg does not make a Clown Fearless work alone. Science magazine article has been written by twenty researchers from Finland, France, Italy, Austria, Norway, and the united states. In addition to them there have been dozens of other people to help. In finland work has been done in particular at the university of Tampere.

the material of the study is quite expensive and slow, so rahoittajiakin are numerous. And more are needed, so the job than the money. The findings are transferred to the manufacture of usually tens of years time span.

This is still many complications.

Frankberg return from Milan to Tampere next spring. The international group will continue to work and find out what other glass materials could behave in a metal way. And that’s the main question, why, is still a complete answer to none.

– how is it that this glass can be plastic. We still lack a complete understanding of the mechanism of origin. Then we go hunting next.

the 32-year-old Frankberg I hope that you can see the stretching of glass in everyday use still lifetime.

I’m Going to work on that. Let’s hope. It is the aim.

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