IBM's "A Boy And His Atom" holds the Guinness World Records™ title for the World's Smallest Stop-Motion Film, showcasing the manipulation of single atoms. Utilizing a scanning tunneling microscope, IBM researchers moved thousands of carbon monoxide molecules, each consisting of two atoms, to create a film that can only be viewed at a magnification of 100 million times. This groundbreaking project highlights the intersection of art and atomic memory research, demonstrating the potential of nanotechnology in creative applications.
PREREQUISITESResearchers in nanotechnology, physicists interested in atomic manipulation, artists exploring new mediums, and anyone fascinated by the convergence of science and art.
You're about to see the movie that holds the Guinness World Records™ record for the World's Smallest Stop-Motion Film. The ability to move single atoms — the smallest particles of any element in the universe — is crucial to IBM's research in the field of atomic memory. But even nanophysicists need to have a little fun. In that spirit, IBM researchers used a scanning tunneling microscope to move thousands of carbon monoxide molecules (two atoms stacked on top of each other), all in pursuit of making a movie so small it can be seen only when you magnify it 100 million times. A movie made with atoms.