How atoms organize during the earliest stages of nucleation has been a subject of speculation for over a century. Using atomically resolved electron microscopy, the formation and ordering of metal clusters from individual atoms has now been observed in carbon nanotubes that serve as ‘test tubes’.
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De Yoreo, J.J., Legg, B.A. What atoms do when they get together. Nat. Chem. 12, 883–885 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-020-0523-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-020-0523-3
