The first and biggest problem facing imperial scientists is to create materials that can be used in warp engines to build materials from an atomic perspective.

The development of science and technology has made it possible for people to artificially synthesize materials on the atomic scale, such as atomic clusters, cluster materials, linear chains, multi-layer heterostructures, ultra-thin films, etc. These materials are characterized by low dimensions, reduced symmetry, and significant geometric characteristics.

But it is only possible. When it is really practical, it is difficult to truly say that you need the materials from the perspective of atoms. The units of atoms are too small. Today's science and technology can only reach the nano level at most, and atoms are much smaller than nanometers.

First of all, we need to understand their size. Nanometer is nanometer in English, abbreviated as nano, nanometer is a type of unit of length, 1 nanometer is one billionth of 1 meter, and is recorded as nm.

1 nanometer is equal to the length of 10 hydrogen atoms arranged in a row next to each other! Because the diameter of each atom is different, 1 nanometer may be equal to the length of the arrangement of dozens of other element atoms.

20 nanometers are almost one thousandth of a hair!

What we usually call nanotechnology refers to the technology of studying the specific phenomena and special functions of matter within the nanoscale (100 nanometers to 0.1 nanometers), and creating new material by directly manipulating and arranging atoms and molecules!

The emergence of nanotechnology is first of all thanks to the invention of scanning tunneling microscope (STM) that can magnify tens of millions of times. The invention of scanning tunneling microscope allows scientists to observe this microscopic world from a nanometer perspective.

Since the early 1990s, nanotechnology has developed rapidly, and new disciplines such as nanoelectronics, nanomaterials, nanomechanics, nanobiology and other new disciplines have emerged continuously. Nanotechnology is one of the nine major sciences that change human history in the future of scientists’ language!

In fact, although today's scientists can observe information at the atomic level through STM technology and have a certain impact on the atomic arrangement structure.

For example, in April 1990, when two scientists from IBM in the United States used STM to observe the xenon atoms on the surface of metal nickel, the motion of the probe and xenon atoms was inspired. They tried to use the STM needle tip to move the xenon atoms adsorbed on the metal nickel, and arranged 35 xenon atoms on the surface of nickel to form the "IBM" structure with a height of 5 atoms!

Scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences also used nanotechnology to draw the world's smallest map of China by relocating carbon atoms on the surface of graphite, which is less than 10 nanometers in size!

Since then, scientists have been happy to move various atoms and put on various patterns, such as silicon atoms, sulfur atoms, iron atoms, carbon monoxide molecules, iron-based molecules...

From this we can know that what scientists can achieve at present is to move some atoms slightly and put various patterns on the surface of objects. It cannot truly create and construct atomic structure in three-dimensional sense, and at the same time, it is impossible to quickly create new materials from the atomic angle on a large scale.

But even so, we can only move some atoms very simply and arrange some atoms on the surface. Scientists have also created various complex nanomaterials today. Artificial arrangement of the structure of copper atoms on the surface of copper can increase the strength of copper by 5 times!

We all know that diamond, that is, diamond, graphite, coke, and the atoms they make are actually the same, that is, carbon atoms! However, the properties of these materials are far different. In terms of hardness alone, diamond is the hardest material in nature, while graphite and coke are very low.

The reason for this difference is the structure of carbon atoms. The atomic structure of diamonds each carbon atom forms a covalent bond with the other 4 carbon atoms with the SP3 hybrid orbital to form a regular tetrahedron. Because the C-C bond in diamond is very strong, the diamond has a high hardness and a very high melting point; and because all valence electrons are limited to the covalent bond region and there are no free electrons, diamond is not conductive.

In the graphite structure, carbon atoms in the same layer hybridize to form covalent bonds with sp2, and each carbon atom is connected to the other three atoms with three covalent bonds. Six carbon atoms form a regular six-contiguous ring on the same plane, extending into a sheet structure.

Here, the bond lengths of the C-C bonds are all 142pm, which is exactly within the bond length range of the atomic crystal. Therefore, for the same layer, it is an atomic crystal. There is a p-orbital left in the carbon atoms on the same plane, and they overlap each other. The electrons are relatively free, equivalent to free electrons in the metal, so graphite can conduct heat and electricity, which is the characteristic of metal crystals.

To be simple and easy to understand, the carbon atom structure of diamond is three-dimensional, and all carbon atoms directly form a regular tetrahedron, which is a three-dimensional structure!

The structure of graphite is that carbon atoms form a regular 6-gon ring on the same plane, forming a layer of layers, that is, layers of carbon atoms, but there is no connection between the carbon atoms between layers. This is a planar structure!

A three-dimensional regular tetrahedral structure and a flat regular hexagonal structure have caused the material properties between diamond and graphite to be far different, and its value is also different! The selling price of diamond is calculated in carats, and the price of graphite is calculated in tons, and the value difference is more than billions of times!

The Empire wanted to develop materials for warp engines, which was to build materials from the perspective of atomic three-dimensionality and turn decay into magic! For example, turning the atomic angle of iron into a tetrahedral three-dimensional structure like diamond, what kind of material would be obtained?

The person responsible for studying materials is Mo Qingming, the chief scientist of the Imperial Academy of Materials Science and the head of the Qingquan Science and Technology Academy of Materials Science in the Times!

Mo Qingming was already in his 50s at this time. Because of his years of cultivation of Yuanli, he looked very young at this time, and there was no difference between him and in his 20s. However, if a scientist at his age was based on the standards on earth, it was the peak moment of a scientist’s life!

Before practicing Yuanli, the average life expectancy of a person was about 80 years old. The previous 30 years were basically in the learning stage, and then it took more than ten years to explore and accumulate on the road of science. It was the peak stage when it was in his 40s and approaching the age of about 50.

With experience, accumulation, and foundation, people can still have a lot of energy, their brains are quick and active, their bodies are good, and they can fight for a long time. Once they pass this age, whether it is the body or brain, they will experience a significant decline, and the value of scientists will greatly shrink at that time!

This is also the reason why many people complain about Yang Zhenning now. The country has cultivated you for decades before, but fortunately you have worked for Americans in the most brilliant and useful age stage. When you get old, your brain and thinking and body are no longer good, and you run back to do all kinds of things!

The scientists of the empire had already widely practiced Yuanli as early as the Qingquan Technology period, and the younger generation even went to the Yuanli Warrior Hall to receive Yuanli's cultivation since childhood, so they all looked like weak scholars, but they were actually masters of Yuanli and nuclear bombs in human form!

Of course, their value is countless times higher than that of nuclear bombs. Yuanli cultivation has given these scientists a long life span, and the time it can be used for scientific research has increased greatly. At the same time, their brains are even more terrifying after Yuanli development, with amazing learning ability and very active thinking!

On the one hand, it shortens the time for scientific learning and accumulation. Of course, with the development of science and technology, a scientist needs to learn more and more; on the other hand, it can greatly extend the golden age of scientists.

Scientists who have not cultivated Yuanli may only have a golden period of only ten years, but scientists who have cultivated Yuanli have very long lifespans and very healthy bodies. Their golden period can be hundreds of years or thousands of years...

Mo Qingming, who was in his 50s, was at the peak of his official life. At this time, his belt was presided over a materials science conference and summoned all the great scientists from the Empire to study materials.

The empire was founded by science and technology, and it attached unprecedented importance to science and technology. The status of scientists is also very high. Basically, aristocrats are scientists, engineers, and few politicians can win the title of aristocrat. Unless they make some special contributions or are at the level of a cabinet minister, the best way to get the title of aristocrat is to be a scientist or engineer!

The material discipline is a very important scientific branch. There are many people who choose this discipline. After decades of development, a large number of genius scientists have emerged, including many scientists in the material discipline, including many genius figures who are already level 3 scientists at a young age.

Mo Qingming looked at the many young faces below. Well, of course, many old people looked very young because of cultivating Yuanli. They couldn't help but sigh: "Damn, these young people are too awesome. Their positions are shaking. If they don't work hard to develop materials to make warp engines, no one will mess with those old guys!"

The many young faces below naturally don’t know what Mo’s scientists on the stage think at this time, and are quietly waiting for him to speak. Mo Qingming is a well-deserved giant in the field of materials. It can be said that he and the scientists from the former Qingquan Science and Technology Materials Academy brought it out.

"No more nonsense, if the Empire wants to enter the universe, the warp engine is indispensable. The biggest problem with the warp engine is the material problem at present. This is the time when we show our wisdom!"
Chapter completed!