Senior Graphic Designer
Search
Close this search box.
Single atom and atoms in the shape of a boy

IBM Manipulates Atoms to Create the ‘World’s Smallest Movie’

By Pete Pachal from Mashable.com:

IBM has created a short film where the actors are actually individual atoms.

A Boy and His Atom would be just like any number of unremarkable animated shorts were it not for the fact that it’s only visible if you use a microscope that enlarges the action by 100 million times. Using techniques it honed after years of researching atomic data storage, IBM created 250 stop-motion frames depicting a boy playing with his (pet? toy?) atom.

How exactly does one manipulate atoms in this way? It’s not cheap: IBM needed to use its two-ton scanning-tunnelling microscope, which operates at minus 450 degrees Fahrenheit, to shoot the film. The microscope moved a “super-sharp” needle to within 1 nanometer of a copper surface, which then could attract and physically move each atom, one by one.

[Full article]

Making the movie:

The owner of this website has made a commitment to accessibility and inclusion, please report any problems that you encounter using the contact form on this website. This site uses the WP ADA Compliance Check plugin to enhance accessibility.