Crack Researchers Create Gutsier Glass英语作文

60秒科学节目（SSS）是科学美国人网站的一套广播栏目，英文名称：Scientific American - 60 Second Science,节目内容以科学报道为主，节目仅一分钟的时间，主要对当今的`科学技术新发展作以简明、通俗的介绍，对于科学的发展如何影响人们的生活环境、健康状况及科学技术，提供了大量简明易懂的阐释。

A cracked smartphone screen's no good. But future phones may be sold with cracks built in—because a network of tiny cracks can actually toughen up a piece of glass.

The crack research team borrowed the concept from mother-of-pearl, the iridescent stuff in abalone shells. It's 3000 times stronger than the mineral it's made of, due to its jigsawlike construction.

Using a 3-D laser engraver—the tool used to make those glass trophies with a logo floating inside—the researchers carved cracks a few microns wide into glass slides, and filled the cracks with polyurethane. The resulting glass was 200 times tougher, because the microcracks dissipate energy, preventing larger cracks. The study is in the journal Nature Communications. [M. Mirkhalaf, A. Khayer Dastjerdi and F. Barthelat, Overcoming the brittleness of glass through bio-inspiration and micro-architecture]

The cracks in this study are visible—so, not suitable for a smartphone screen. But the researchers say it's possible to shrink them down to less than a micron wide, an imperceptible size. As to whether crack-proof screens are a good business model, well, how much are you willing to shell out for an unbreakable phone?

—Christopher Intagliata