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LOS ANGELES - Scientists at Cornell University just released the highest-resolution images of atoms ever recorded in human history,
The process of capturing the images involves the creation of a high-powered algorithm process called ptychography using an electron microscope.
Researchers used ultra-thin samples of a crystal to capture the image. The samples used were only a few atoms thick.
"Anything thicker would cause the electrons to scatter in ways that could not be disentangled," Cornell University researchers said.
This process previously broke a world record in 2018 by magnifying images 100 million times. Researchers use the microscope to shoot a beam of electrons at an object which then bounces off to create a scan which is reverse engineered to create a visual sample.
Image shows an electron ptychographic reconstruction of a crystal, zoomed in 100 million times. (Cornell University)
Cornell researchers say the resolution of the image is so "fine-tuned" that the blurring that is visible is that of the thermal jiggling of the atoms themselves.
The photo was produced in a study led by engineering professor David Muller.
"This opens up a whole lot of new measurement possibilities of things we’ve wanted to do for a very long time," Muller said.