Pulling nanowires from salt

Nano Letters 9, 2295 (2009), 10.1021/nl9004805, http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/News/2009/May/26050903.asp, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/07/science/07obsalt.html, http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/45132/title/Salt_stretches_i…, http://www.sandia.gov/LabNews/090605.html, http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn17374-salt-crystals-reveal-surpri…, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGcFCD8E7o8

Superplastic nanowires were formed by touching the NaCl(100) surface with a Au tip in a transmission electron microscope. The nanowires

were stretched e2.2 μm, or 280%, and bent >90° upon compression, when showered with the electron beam. More surprisingly, no dislocations

were observable during the elongation due to fast diffusion. Mechanical measurements in humid atmospheres suggest that salt nanowires

also form in ambient environments.