The Smallest Particle of Ice Collaborative research between
scientists in the UK and Germany (published in Nature Materials)
has led to a breakthrough in the understanding of the formation
of ice. Dr Angelos Michaelides of the London Centre for
Nanotechnology (formerly of the Fritz-Haber Institut der Max-
Planck Gesellschaft in Berlin) and Professor Karina Morgenstern
of the Leibniz University Hannover have combined experimental
observations with theoretical modelling to reveal with
unprecedented resolution the structures of the smallest pieces
of ice that form on hydrophobic metal surfaces. The results
provide information about the process of ice nucleation at a
molecular level and take science a significant step closer to
understanding the mysterious process through which ice forms
around microscopic dust particles in the upper atmosphere.
Because this is the basis of cloud formation, knowing how
different particles promote ice formation is crucial for climate
change models. The authors began by cooling down