The First Atomic Bomb Test in 1945 Created an Entirely New Material
The First Atomic Bomb Test in 1945 Created an Entirely New Material
1945年首次原子弹试验创造了一种全新的材料
During the Trinity nuclear test on July 16, 1945, in the New Mexico desert—the world’s very first test of an atomic bomb—a new material spontaneously formed. It was discovered only recently, by an international research team coordinated by geologist Luca Bindi at the University of Florence, which identified the novel clathrate based on calcium, copper, and silicon. It’s a material never before observed either in nature or as an artificial compound created in the laboratory.
1945年7月16日，在新墨西哥州的沙漠中进行了“三位一体”（Trinity）核试验——这是世界上首次原子弹试验——一种新材料自发形成了。直到最近，由佛罗伦萨大学地质学家卢卡·宾迪（Luca Bindi）协调的一个国际研究团队才发现了它，并鉴定出这种基于钙、铜和硅的新型笼状化合物（clathrate）。这是一种此前从未在自然界中观察到，也从未在实验室中人工合成过的材料。
What Are Clathrates? 什么是笼状化合物？
The term “clathrates” denotes materials characterized by a “cage-like” structure that traps other atoms and molecules inside, giving them unique properties. Of great technological interest, these materials are being studied for various applications ranging from energy conversion (as thermoelectric materials capable of transforming heat into electricity) to the development of new semiconductors, to gas storage and hydrogen for future energy technologies.
“笼状化合物”一词指的是具有“笼状”结构的材料，这种结构可以将其他原子和分子捕获在内部，从而赋予它们独特的性质。由于具有巨大的技术价值，这些材料正被研究用于各种应用，范围从能量转换（作为能够将热量转化为电能的热电材料），到新型半导体的开发，再到未来能源技术中的气体储存和氢能储存。
The New Material 这种新材料
To discover the new material, researchers focused on trinitite, a silicate glass containing rare metallic phases. Using some techniques like x-ray diffraction, the team was able to identify a type I clathrate based on calcium, copper, and silicon within a tiny copper-rich metal droplet embedded in a sample of red trinitite.
为了发现这种新材料，研究人员将目光投向了“三位一体”玻璃（trinitite），这是一种含有稀有金属相的硅酸盐玻璃。通过使用X射线衍射等技术，研究团队在嵌入红色三位一体玻璃样本中的一个微小富铜金属液滴内，鉴定出了一种基于钙、铜和硅的I型笼状化合物。
The new material, the researchers say, formed spontaneously during a nuclear explosion. This indicates that the extreme conditions, such as extremely high temperatures and pressures, can generate new materials that are impossible to obtain by traditional methods.
研究人员表示，这种新材料是在核爆炸过程中自发形成的。这表明，极高的温度和压力等极端条件可以产生通过传统方法无法获得的全新材料。
Natural Laboratories 天然实验室
The discovery is even more interesting because in the same detonation event another very rare material was formed: a silicon-rich quasicrystal, already documented by the team of experts led by Bindi a few years ago.
这一发现之所以更加引人注目，是因为在同一次爆炸事件中还形成了另一种非常罕见的材料：一种富硅准晶体（quasicrystal），宾迪领导的专家团队几年前就已经记录过这种材料。
A quasicrystal, as Bindi told WIRED at the time, is something that is not a crystal, but looks a lot like one. “Their peculiarity,” he said, “is that the atomic arrangement that is not periodic, but nearly so, creates incredible symmetries from which derive amazing physical properties, among other things, very difficult to predict.”
正如宾迪当时告诉《连线》（WIRED）的那样，准晶体不是晶体，但看起来非常像晶体。“它们的特殊之处在于，”他说，“其原子排列不是周期性的，但非常接近周期性，这创造了令人难以置信的对称性，并由此产生了惊人的物理特性，而这些特性往往非常难以预测。”
Establishing the link between these structures therefore helps scientists better understand how atoms organize under extreme conditions and expand the possibilities for designing new materials. “Events such as nuclear explosions, lightning strikes, or meteoritic impacts function as true natural laboratories,” the researchers explain. “They allow us to observe forms of matter that we cannot easily reproduce in the laboratory.”
因此，建立这些结构之间的联系有助于科学家更好地理解原子在极端条件下是如何组织的，并扩展设计新材料的可能性。“核爆炸、雷击或陨石撞击等事件就像真正的天然实验室，”研究人员解释道，“它们使我们能够观察到在实验室中难以重现的物质形态。”
In essence, this research opens new vistas for the development of innovative technologies, demonstrating that even destructive events can bequeath discoveries useful for the future.
从本质上讲，这项研究为创新技术的发展开辟了新的前景，证明了即使是破坏性的事件也能留下对未来有用的发现。