Amazing stuff!
"Scientists have successfully combined the intricate structure of DNA with the purity of glass to create a material that boasts both lightness and unprecedented strength. The resulting supermaterial is five times lighter yet four times stronger than steel. This makes it "the strongest known" for its given density ...
An unexpected union of strength and lightness
The quest for materials that perfectly balance strength and lightness has always been a challenge. The two characteristics often seem at odds with each other, but that doesn't have to be the case. ..."
From the highlights and abstract:
"Highlights
• Fabrication of 3D silica nanostructures via DNA assembly and templating
• In situ micro-compression testing to examine the mechanical properties
• Nanostructures show a nearly theoretical compressive strength of 5 GPa
Summary
Continuous nanolattices are an emerging class of mechanical metamaterials that are highly attractive due to their superior strength-to-weight ratios, which originate from their spatial architectures and nanoscale-sized elements possessing near-theoretical strength. Rational design of frameworks remains challenging below 50 nm because of limited methods to arrange small elements into complex architectures. Here, we fabricate silica frameworks with ∼4- to 20-nm-thick elements using self-assembly and silica templating of DNA origami nanolattices and perform in situ micro-compression testing to examine the mechanical properties. We observe strong effects of lattice dimensions on yield strength () and failure mode. Silica nanolattices are found to exhibit yield strengths higher than those of any known engineering materials with similar mass density. The robust coordination of the nanothin and strong silica elements leads to the combination of lightweight and high-strength framework materials offering an effective strategy for the fabrication of nanoarchitected materials with superior mechanical properties."
Strong as Glass By building a structure out of DNA and then coating it with glass, a research team led by Oleg Gang has created a very strong material with very low density.
Strong as Glass By building a structure out of DNA and then coating it with glass, researchers have created a very strong material with very low density
High-strength, lightweight nano-architected silica (open access)
Graphical abstract
Illustration of the nanoscale-ordered frameworks formed by DNA assembly and silica templating methods demonstrate a high compressive strength, which puts this material at the top of the performance in its class.
Strong as glass
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