Research published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, from University College London and some Hungarian colleagues, found that the diamonds formed during the impact had “unique and exceptional properties”.
The researchers say that these structures can be targeted for advanced mechanical and electronic applications, giving us the ability to design materials that are not only ultra-hard but also malleable, with tunable electronic properties.
The meteorite the team examined was found in the Arizona desert in 1891.
Previously thought to consist of a hexagonal diamond structure, it was found to be made of “nanostructured” diamond, and crystalline “intergrowths” of two different minerals.
According to the scientists, the structural units and the complexity reported in the samples can occur in a wide range of other carbonaceous materials produced by shock and static compression or by deposition from the vapour phase.
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“Through the controlled layer growth of structures, it should be possible to design materials that are both ultra-hard and also ductile, as well as have adjustable electronic properties from a conductor to an insulator,” study co-author Professor Christoph Salzmann from UCL said.
“The discovery has therefore opened the door to new carbon materials with exciting mechanical and electronic properties that may result in new applications ranging from abrasives and electronics to nanomedicine and laser technology.”
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