Snowflakes: Nano at its Coolest

Snowflakes have a complex structure, determined by the nanoscale arrangement of water molecules in an ice crystal and by the specific environmental conditions under which the snowflake forms.

• It snows when it’s cold and cloudy: the temperature is below freezing and the air is supersaturated with water vapor.

• Snowflakes almost always have six sides, because ice crystals most commonly have a hexagonal structure. The macroscale structure that we can see (the snowflake) reflects the nanoscale arrangement of water molecules.

• It’s true that no two snowflakes are exactly alike, but snowflakes can be classified into a number of types.

• Nano is very, very small.

• Nanoscientists learn about and make things that are too small to see.

• Snowflakes are an example of self-assembly in nature. Self-assembly is a process by which molecules and cells form themselves into specific, ordered structures under the right conditions.

• Researchers in the field of nanotechnology are studying self-assembly in order to create new materials and technologies.

• Nanoscale effects occur in many places. Some are natural, everyday occurrences; others are the result of cutting-edge research.

• Nanotechnology means working at small size scales, manipulating materials to exhibit new properties.

Nanometer-sized things are very small, and often behave differently than larger things do.

Scientists and engineers have formed the interdisciplinary field of nanotechnology by investigating properties and manipulating matter at the nanoscale.

Nanoscience, nanotechnology, and nanoengineering lead to new knowledge and innovations that weren't possible before.