https://phys.org/news/2020-07-diamonds-hidden-currents-graphene.html
incremental improvements in the methods for detecting what is going on inside materials on the nano-scale (or even smaller) like the one described in the link above is bound to eventually lead to faster breakthroughs in understanding which would lead to, among other things in this case, better molecular designs for conductors and superconductors.
@humy
So the first technique sounds like a variation of atomic force microscopes with a moving tip sliding past the conductor.
It will be interesting to see what other folks do with this technology.
Being able to image the flow will lead to designs of graphene and other material useful for technological applications unknown before this work.
Fundamental work in the observation of electron flow in Graphene.
@sonhouse
Maybe that crazy, nutty scientist that described a carbon micro-circuit to me 30 years ago wasn't a crazy nut after all.
@sonhouse saidA science researcher I once met helped dig this carbon chip out of some woman who claimed to have been abducted.
@bunnyknight
Who was that pray tell?
@bunnyknight
Carbon chip? So was it analyzed by scientists say with electron microscopes to see if there was actual circuitry on it? My guess is one of the persons involved with that story just looked at it under a microscope and just CONCLUDED it had to have come from aliens, neglecting to ask WHY aliens would want to do that in the first place, like if it is actual circuitry, was there some kind of RF transmitter as part of it so there would be say a GPS kind of thing going on so they could track her in the wild?
The whole thing sounds preposterous to me on the face of it.
I could do a pretty good job of sussing out whether it was alien tech or not.
@sonhouse saidI'm not sure anybody concluded anything. Perhaps it's still a mystery and will remain a mystery forever.
@bunnyknight
Carbon chip? So was it analyzed by scientists say with electron microscopes to see if there was actual circuitry on it? My guess is one of the persons involved with that story just looked at it under a microscope and just CONCLUDED it had to have come from aliens, neglecting to ask WHY aliens would want to do that in the first place, like if it is actual circui ...[text shortened]... me on the face of it.
I could do a pretty good job of sussing out whether it was alien tech or not.
As for analyzing it, at that time all they found was a carbon chip with unnatural microscopic patterns, and they were puzzled. Today perhaps someone figured it out and it's sitting in some secret lab -- who the heck knows? I certainly don't. There are lot's of mysteries out there and I don't get angry over them.
Also, imagine if someone dropped an AMD Epyc cpu on your desk 40 or 50 years ago -- would you be able to figure it out; locate inputs and outputs; how to power it?