Created the most thin nanowire in one atom

Researchers at the University of Cambridge and the University of Warwick (UK) have managed to create the world's thinnest one-dimensional nanowire of tellurium with a thickness of just one atom. As you know, the universe is three-dimensional. Even a sheet of paper cannot be truly one- or two-dimensional — it will still have a thickness. However, modern materials like graphene allow you to create structures with a thickness of one atom, which makes them essentially two-dimensional. The nanowire in question is one-dimensional, since its dimensions are limited to only one atom.

The nanoscale dimensions of the wire entailed a problem — in the free state, atoms without a structure are difficult to hold together. In view of this, the product would turn out to be very fragile. To keep tellurium atoms in a single chain, British scientists introduced them into the center of carbon nanotubes without compromising conductivity.

The researchers also found that by changing the cross-section of the nanotube, they can affect the properties of tellurium. In its normal state, it is a semiconductor, but under certain conditions, tellurium acquires the properties of a metal.

The appearance of conductors in the form of monatomic nanowires opens up broad prospects for further miniaturization of microcircuits, which will significantly reduce the size of the entire line of modern electronics.