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Instant Quasicrystal

2 January 2023
Electromagnetism

At https://phys.org/news/2022-12-quasicrystal-accidental-electrical-discharge.html … a quasicrystal formed during an accidental electrical discharge. A paper in PNAS refers to a quasicrystal found in a sand dune in Nebraska. Quasicrystals possess properties not found in ordinary crystals but have been found in meteorites and in debris from nuclear blasts. This one was embedded in a sand dune and had a dodecagonal symmetry [12 fold] and seems to have formed via an electrical surge. Either from a power line landing on the sand – or via lightning. It was found inside a fulgarite – tubular in shape. Fulgarites have  been associated with electrical discharges previously and in this case was formed from a melting of sand and metal, possibly from a power line.

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