9/19/2023 The Liu lab is getting in the spooky spirit

There’s something witchy going on here. The original selected area electron diffraction image shows a gold thin film deposited onto an insulating material called hexagonal boron nitride (hBN). In our lab, gold is used to isolate atomically thin hBN sheets that can be used in electronic devices, such as transistors and solar cells. We were captivated by the foreboding arcs created by the secondary scattering of electrons in the hBN crystal. Inspired by their pentagon-like structure, we added flying bats and a witch to complete a spooky scientific scene. The triangular beam-block used to protect the camera made a perfect witch’s hat!

(Submitted to the NNCI nano-art competition)