The prospect of making materials so hard they can dent diamond has come a step closer with insight into the structure of a new form of superhard graphite.
In 2003, an experiment suggested that graphite, which is normally soft, could become ultra-hard when compressed. Graphite squeezed between two diamond jaws at pressures of 170,000 atmospheres managed to produce a crack in the diamond. The atomic structure of the material remained elusive, however.
Might this be a candidate for future starship hull material? To read the rest of the article, click here.