Nanotubes: Knot just for miniature work
Individual carbon nanotubes are too small to see without a powerful microscope. A new technique, however, can spin carbon nanotubes into ribbons and threads visible to the naked eye.
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Designers might someday use the superstrong fibers—which they can bend and even tie into knots—to make tough but lightweight composite materials, energy-converting devices, and new generations of electric cables, says Philippe Poulin of the Paul Pascal Research Center in Pessac, France.