Wouldn't it be nice if we could measure the mechanical forces applied in atoms at the moment of breakage? Thanks to today's technology, it has already been made possible.
Using a high-resolution atomic force microscope (AFM), researchers from Princeton University, the University of Texas-Austin, and ExxonMobil recorded the breaking of a single chemical bond between a carbon atom (which was from a carbon monoxide molecule) and an iron atom (from iron phthalocyanine). The findings could have applications for biochemistry, materials science, and energy technologies. The said findings were reported in a paper recently published in Nature Communications.
Now, scientists know the amount of force needed to break a single chemical bond.
Learn more about this study over at Princeton University.
(Image Credit: Pengcheng Chen et al.)
#MolecularBreakup #Chemistry #Atom #Molecule #MaterialScience
(Image Credit: Pengcheng Chen et al. via Nature)