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The Second Kind of Impossible

Page 33

by Paul Steinhardt


  Kostin, Alexander “Sasha,” 241, 247, 254–55, 261, 270, 277, 278, 284, 284, 289, 306–7, 330–31

  Kryachko, Valery V., 203–6, 226, 252, 269, 271, 319, 331

  author’s correspondence with, 206–9

  author’s search for, 204–6

  blue-green clay and, 265, 266–67, 278–79, 281

  connection to Leonid Razin and 1985 paper, 203–4, 209, 243, 265

  first trip to the Listvenitovyi (1979), 206–9, 226, 232, 234–35, 238, 278

  on Kamchatka expedition (2011), 235, 238, 247, 252–53, 261, 264, 265, 266–67, 268–69, 270, 271, 278–79, 284, 285, 286, 289, 295–96, 306, 307, 321

  kryachkoite named for, 355

  microscope in the field, 271, 284, 285, 299

  panning, 268–69, 270, 307, 321

  planning and guiding of Kamchatka expedition, 234, 242–45, 246–48, 263, 264, 265, 266, 295–96

  kryachkoite, 355

  Laboratory for Research on the Structure of Matter, 87–88

  layer-by-layer growth, 95

  Leucippus, 16

  Levine, Dov, 7, 17, 36–72, 38, 307–8

  and Cahn’s visit to, 85–87

  and discovery of quasicrystal concept, 2, 3, 7, 8, 68–70, 72, 84–85, 88, 100, 114, 308, 323

  his first encounter with author, 80–81, 82–84, 85

  and first paper on quasicrystals, 68–70, 72, 84–85, 88–90, 90, 100, 114, 357

  first prediction of quasicrystal pattern, 70–73, 73

  icosahedron symmetry studied by, 37–40

  laws of crystallography challenged by, 17–18, 36–40

  and negotiation with Razin, 175

  and Nelson’s visit, 80–86

  Penrose and Penrose tiling, 40, 41, 44, 46–47, 49, 51, 52–62

  Lin, Chaney, 327–34, 328, 347, 354–55, 356

  Linde, Andrei, 68

  liquids, rapid cooling of, 31–32, 80, 86

  Listvenitovyi Stream, 165, 168, 203–4, 206, 208, 228, 238, 245, 246, 256, 264, 265, 268, 269, 280, 282, 288, 296, 297, 319, 320

  grains removed from, 326; see also Khatyrka meteorite

  Lu, Peter, 118–19, 122–30, 134, 140, 146, 186–88, 308

  discovery of first natural quasicrystal (icosahedrite), 187

  Islamic tiling studied by, 125–27

  joining search for natural quasicrystals, 118, 127, 129–30, 146, 308

  and Science article announcing discovery of first natural quasicrystal, icosahedrite (“Natural Quasicrystals”), 183, 186, 187, 188

  Lubensky, Tom, 104

  Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (LPSC), 317, 318

  Ma, Chi, 354–55

  Mackay, Alan, 53–54, 55

  MacPherson, Glenn, 284, 336, 347

  Allende meteorite studied by, 180–81, 182–83, 225, 312

  and Science article announcing discovery of first natural quasicrystal, icosahedrite (“Natural Quasicrystals”), 158, 167, 182, 184, 185, 186, 187

  and MAPS article announcing discovery of meteorite (MacPherson et al., “Khatyrka, a new CV3 find from the Koryak Mountains, Eastern Russia”), 317–18

  and discovery of stishovite in Florence sample, 218, 219

  and Florence sample’s relation to origin of solar system, 225–27

  Grain #121 studied by, 310–13

  and Grain #126A, 348

  grains studied by, 284–87

  and issue of natural aluminum, 153, 154–57, 158, 161, 163, 167, 169–70, 172, 179, 184, 185, 188, 189, 195–96, 215, 241

  and Kamchatka expedition, 210, 228, 239, 240, 243–45

  on Kamchatka expedition, 268, 270, 271, 273, 274, 275, 277–78, 282, 284–87, 291, 321

  and nebula theory of origin of quasicrystal, 333, 337, 339, 357

  on odds of success of Kamchatka expedition, 302, 303–4

  see also blue team and red team

  results on Kamchatka tests shared by, 316–17, 319

  and slag theory of Florence sample, 155–57, 158, 161, 196, 225–26

  Makovskii, Bogdan, 247–48, 251, 255–57, 276, 291, 293, 296, 300

  Man, Weining, 359, 360

  manganese, 76–77, 82, 85, 87

  Mao, Ho-Kwang, 338

  Mars, 222

  Mars Exploration Rover mission, 212

  matching rules:

  of Ammann’s tiles, 55, 56–57

  of Penrose tiles, 42, 44, 49, 53, 94, 106–7

  of three-dimensional rhombohedrons, 94

  of two-dimensional rhombus shapes, 92–93

  “Mathematical Games,” 41–42, 43

  Meier, Matthias, 339, 340, 341, 363

  metals, rapid cooling of, 73, 86, 103–4, 107

  metamorphic rocks, 148

  Meteor Crater, 216

  meteorites, 130, 153

  Allende, 180–83, 190, 225, 310–11, 320

  CV3 carbonaceous chondrite, 180, 181, 224–25, 316, 320, 322, 333, 364

  Khatyrka, see Khatyrka meteorite

  theory of Florence sample as, 153, 154, 155, 180–82, 185, 190, 213, 218, 219, 220, 221, 225, 228, 232, 241, 281, 282–83, 315–16, 325

  Meteoritics & Planetary Science (MAPS), 317–18

  meteoroids, 339–40

  Mindat.org, 162

  mineral market, 163

  molécule intégrante, 16, 17

  Morgan, Jason, 152–53

  mosquitoes, 2–3, 232, 251–54

  multigrid method for generating Penrose tiles, 91–92, 92

  multiple twinning, 74–76, 75, 86–87, 102, 104, 105, 112, 113

  NanoSIMS, 220–27, 315–16, 322

  National Bureau of Standards, 73, 85, 86, 89, 101

  National Geographical Society, 236

  Natural History Museum, New York, 154–57, 274

  Natural History Museum, University of Florence (Museo di Storia Naturale dell’Università di Firenze), 177, 344

  “Natural Quasicrystals,” Science (Bindi, Steinhardt, Yao, and Lu), 146–47, 154–55, 168, 171, 183–87, 187, 235

  Nelson, David, 29, 31, 32, 54, 64, 308

  author’s talk on rapidly cooled liquids research with, 80–81, 82–84, 85

  and cubatic phase, 29, 32, 82

  telling author about the discovery of Al6Mn, 80–81, 82–84, 85

  new inflationary theory, 68, 72

  nine-fold symmetry, 66–67

  noble gases, 339

  North-East Scientific Research Institute, 207

  Onoda, George, 107–8

  oxygen isotopes and Caltech test, 214, 220, 222–26, 225, 316, 322

  Pauling, Linus, 101–2, 104, 105, 112–13

  article sponsored by, 113

  exchanges with author, 112, 113

  multiple-twinning theory of quasicrystals, 101, 102, 104, 105, 112, 113

  “quasi-scientists,” 101

  Pennsylvania, University of, 28, 69, 81

  Penrose, Roger, 40, 52, 64, 109–10, 308

  and growth rules, 110

  Penrose tiling pattern invented by, 41

  Penrose tiling, 25–26, 40, 41, 95, 96, 125

  deflation and inflation rules obeyed by, 50, 51, 94

  difficulties in covering surfaces with, 106–7

  diffraction pattern of, 54–55

  five-fold rotational symmetry in, 47–49, 51, 55, 57

  and golden ratio, 59, 61

  growth rules of, 105, 107, 109–10

  Mackay’s interest in, 53

  matching and interlocking rules of, 42, 44, 49, 53, 64–65, 94, 105–9

  multigrid method of generating, 91–92

  as nonperiodic, 41–51

  projection method of creating, 91–92

  as quasiperiodic, 62, 63–68, 67

  secret symmetry discovered, 62

  Scientific American (“Mathematical Games”) article on, 40, 41–42, 43, 44

  see also Ammann, Robert

  pentagons, 18, 22, 33, 57

  golden ratio and, 59–60, 59

  in natural quasicrystal, 142

/>   periodic tiling, 18–21

  petrology, 148

  Phidias, 58

  photonic quasicrystals, 359–61

  “Physics X” and author, 9–12

  Platonic solids, 33

  powder-diffraction patterns, 120–23, 133–35, 145

  primary dig site at the Listvenitovyi stream, 267, 268, 270, 278, 279, 287, 315

  Princeton Imaging and Analysis Center, 136, 150, 183

  Princeton University, 117–19, 124, 221, 236

  projection method of generating Penrose patterns, 91–92

  propellant gun and Paul Asimow, 350–51, 350, 351, 353, 353

  pyrite, 287–88

  quasicrystals, natural

  discovery of first natural quasicrystal, icosahedrite, 142–46, 144

  discovery of first natural quasicrystal, icosahedrite, in Kamchatka, 305–9, 315

  discovery of second natural quasicrystal, decagonite, in Kamchatka, 344–46, 355

  discovery of third natural quasicrystal, i-phase II, in Kamchatka, 355–59, 356

  and issue of natural aluminum, 150–57, 158–76, 177–89, 190

  nebula vs. collision theories of, 333, 337, 339, 356–57, 361

  and Science article announcing discovery, 183, 186, 187, 190

  search in Kamchatka for, 267–72

  quasicrystal patterns and girih tiling in Islamic culture, 125–27

  quasicrystals, synthetic

  natural quasicrystals vs., 149–50

  photonic, 359–61

  potential applications of, 123–24, 358, 360–61

  Shechtman’s discovery of ten-fold symmetry 72–76, 86–87

  Shechtman team’s paper on, 81–84

  Tsai team’s discovery of first bona fide quasicrystal, 110–11, 111, 113, 146, 149

  use for nonstick coating, 123–24

  quasicrystals, theoretical discovery of, 7, 75, 105, 255

  Cahn’s endorsing of author’s model of, 88

  De Bruijn’s method of creating, 91–92

  deflation and inflation rules of, 94–95

  demonstration for Feynman, 7, 25–27, 27

  diffraction pattern of, 70–72, 82, 84, 87

  forbidden symmetries allowed by, 66–67

  four building blocks of, 101–2

  generated by matching rules, 92–93

  growth rules of, 110

  interlock rules of, 109

  naming and definition of, 25–26

  patent application for, 69–70, 69

  Pauling’s denial of, 101–2

  Penrose tiling as, 62

  projection method for creating, 91–92

  “Quasicrystals: A New Class of Ordered Structures” (Levine and Steinhardt) Physical Review Letters, 85

  quasiperiodic sequences, 26, 61, 62

  rhombic triacontahedron, 65–66, 66

  scientific doubts about, 68, 101–2, 105, 110

  quintesseite (or, i-phase II), 355

  rapid solidification, 29, 64

  Razin, Leonid, 164, 164, 171–76, 193, 198, 199, 201, 202–4, 206, 243–44, 266, 281

  red team, see blue team and red team

  rhombic dodecahedron, 97

  rhombic icosahedron, 97

  rhombic triacontahedron, 65–66, 97

  rhombohedrons, 15, 15, 17

  fat and skinny, 53, 54–55, 65–66, 93, 94, 95, 105, 106

  interlock rules of, 65–66, 95

  methods for generating, 91–92

  as packing together without gaps, 78

  search for quasi-periodic arrangements of, 65

  rhombuses, 44, 46, 47–48, 50

  rhombus tilings:

  five-fold symmetry in, 55, 57

  methods for generating with infinite number of possible symmetries, 91–93

  Ronchetti, Marco, 29, 31, 32

  rotational symmetry, 20–22, 21

  of crystals, 18, 22–23

  five-fold, see five-fold rotational symmetry

  impossible types for crystals, 18, 22, 23, 25

  possible types for crystals, 22, 25

  rules for crystals and periodic patterns, see Bravais, Auguste; Haüy, René-Just

  Rudashevsky, Nikolai, 164, 198, 199, 202–3

  Rudashevsky, Vladimir, 202–3

  Russian Academy of Sciences, 171, 172, 207

  St. Petersburg Mining Museum, 163–65, 167, 174, 199–200, 243, 244

  salmon, 275–76

  salmon caviar, 267

  Schaefer, Robert, 73

  semiconductors, 360

  seven-fold symmetry, 66–67, 67

  seventeen-fold symmetry, 92

  shadow, color of, 10

  Shechtman, Dan, 63–64, 72–73, 89, 111, 112, 358

  aluminum-manganese alloy discovery by, 74–76

  author invited to Technion by, 97–98

  Nobel Prize won by, 72

  publication by, 81–83, 84, 85

  ten-fold symmetry discovered by (“no such animal” remark), 74–76, 86–87

  Shechtman-Blech model, 76–79, 77, 82, 87, 98

  Shephard, Geoffrey, 55

  silicate, 312, 326, 349

  silicon, 360

  slowly cooled, 31

  silicon dioxide, 216, 331

  singularity theorems, 40

  skinny and fat rhombohedrons, 53, 54–55, 65–66, 93, 94, 95, 105, 106

  Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, 88, 153, 155, 156, 161, 170, 179, 210, 221, 226, 236, 306, 336

  Socolar, Joshua, 91, 93–96, 101–2, 109, 110, 308

  on discovering four building blocks of three-dimensional quasicrystal models, 101–2

  and growth rules for three-dimensional tiles, 110

  and growth rules for two-dimensional tiles, 105, 107, 109, 110

  and matching rules for three-dimensional quasicrystals, 94–98

  and multigrid method for generating tilings, 91

  solar system, 181

  and Allende meteorite, 181–82

  and Khatyrka meteorite, 228, 227–28, 232, 311, 334

  Soviet Institute of Platinum, 171

  spinel, 349

  spinodal decomposition, 86

  SPring-8 (Super Photon ring-8 GeV), 338

  squares, rotational symmetry of, 20–21, 21

  Stagno, Vincenzo, 338

  Station Zero, 294

  Steinhardt, Paul, 129

  and “barking dog” shape and i-phase II, 355–56, 356

  and Bindi, first meeting with, 187–89

  see also blue team and red team

  and Cahn’s visit to, 85–87

  and discovery of first natural quasicrystal, icosahedrite, 142–47 144

  and discovery of growth rules, for icosahedral building blocks, 110

  and discovery of growth rules, for Penrose tilings, 105, 107, 109, 110

  and discovery of icosahedrite, in Grain #5, 304–9, 304, 305, 315

  and discovery of quasicrystal concept, 2, 3, 7, 8, 68–70, 72, 84–85, 88, 100, 114, 308

  and discovery of second natural quasicrystal, decagonite, 344–46, 345

  Steinhardt, Paul (cont.)

  and discovery of secret symmetry of Penrose patterns, 61–62

  and discovery of stishovite in Florence sample, 215–19, 217

  and discovery of third natural quasicrystal, i-phase II, 355–56, 356, 357–59, 356

  and experiments, see experimental tests

  and first museum search for natural quasicrystals (1984), 88–89

  and first prediction of quasicrystal diffraction pattern, 70–73, 73

  and first publication on quasicrystals, 68–70, 72, 84–85, 88–90, 90, 100, 114, 357

  and inspiration from Vonnegut’s ice-nine, 37, 50, 64

  invitation to Technion by Shechtman, 97–98

  Islamic tiling studied by, 125–26

  in Kamchatka Peninsula, see Kamchatka Peninsula, Steinhardt’s expedition to

  and Kalashnikov rifle, 276–77, 290

  Kryachko’s correspondence
with, 206–9

  laws of crystallography challenged by, 17–18, 25

  and loss of Kamchatka samples, 335–36, 343

  and meeting Tsai, 112

  meeting with Stolper, 211–14

  models of glass and amorphous silicon by, 31–32

  and Nelson’s visit, 80–86

  and new inflationary theory of the universe, 68, 72

  Penrose tiling studied by, 41–62, 45, 48, 50

  “Physics X” course with Feynman initiated by, 9–12

  powder-diffraction patterns studied by, 119–25, 121, 122, 127,

  and relationship with Pauling, 112–13

  in search for origin of Florence sample, 160–63, 164–65, 167, 170, 171–76, 177–89, 215–19

  spinodal decomposition theory used by, 86

  and Science article (“Natural Quasicrystals”), 146–47, 154, 167, 171, 177, 182, 183, 184–86, 187

  steinhardtite named for, 343–44, 344, 345, 353

  Super Ball experiment by, 11–12

  and “turkey” shape in Grain #126A, 348, 348, 351, 352, 355

  Steinhardt, Will, 241–42, 306, 307, 349, 368

  digging at Listvenitovyi stream, 268, 270, 278, 279–80, 280, 284, 321

  on Kamchatka expedition, 248, 249, 253, 254, 256, 258, 265, 271, 272, 273, 288, 289, 290, 294, 301, 306

  missing in Kamchatka, 233–34, 251

  and naming of steinhardtite, 343

  target practice in Kamchatka, 276, 277

  Will’s Hole, 279, 281, 313, 314, 315

  steinhardtite, 343–44, 344, 345, 353

  Stephens, Peter, 102

  Stishov, Sergey, 216

  stishovite, 216–19, 221, 320–21

  and natural quasicrystals, 215–20, 217

  and Meteor Crater, 216

  Stolper, Ed, 211–14, 215, 220, 308, 355

  stolperite, 355

  Super Ball experiment, 11–12

  superplume theory, 152–53, 154, 240–41, 273

  symmetry:

  author and Levine’s study of, 37–40

  of cube, 29, 32

  of face-centered cubic, 29

  and icosahedron, 32–35, 37–40, 55

  loophole in rules about, 51, 52–62, 64

  of photonic quasicrystals, 360–61

  in quasiperiodic ordering, 66–67

  rotational, see rotational symmetry

  Technion, 73, 97–98

  Tel Aviv, Israel, 171–76

  ten-fold rotational symmetry, 49, 100

  in first natural quasicrystal, 142, 146

  of second natural quasicrystal, 345–46

  Shechtman team’s discovery of, 74–76, 86–87

  Tenth Texas Symposium on Relativistic Astrophysics, 40–41

  Terrestrial Fractionation (TF), 223–24

  tetrahedron, 17, 17

  3D printing of quasicrystals, 359–61, 359

  Tim the Romanian, 192, 193, 195, 197, 198

 

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