BREAKING NEWS

Technion ‘mines’ gold crystals in lab

Gold – at least an artificial, porous, single crystal of the precious metal – has been “grown” for the first time in the world by scientists at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa.
The breakthrough achievement was conducted by doctoral student Maria Koifman-Khristosov under the guidance of Prof. Boaz Pokroy of the science and materials engineering faulty; the report has just been published in the prestigious journal Nature Communications.
“Our motivation in developing the new technology is purely scientific,” said Koifman-Khristosov, “but these materials clearly have many potential applications.
Single crystals have multiple advantages resulting from the absence of the nuclear boundaries characteristic of ‘normal’ crystals. These advantages include mechanical strength, high resistance to heat and enhanced conduction of electricity and heat.”