Anyone want to knit a microscopic sweater?
By Peter Weiss
Rod-shaped molecules can organize themselves by, say, lining up like sardines or grouping
into distinct layers when they form orderly fluids known as liquid crystals. If exposed to ultraviolet
(UV) light or heat, the molecules of some liquid crystals self-organize in a second way:
They link into long chains called polymers.
Now, scientists investigating such materials have accidentally created microscopic polymer
tubes that tangle themselves into clumps that resemble balls of yarn, report Pavel A. Kossyrev