[Brett66]

Scotty finally revealed his secret!

[70times7]

LOL, first thing I thought of too. (a keyboard...how quaint)

[Aquinasfan]

The 3M scientists characterised the glasses using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and thermal analysis, and tested the strength of the materials with hardness and fracture toughness tests.

What about the tensile tests? Austempering, marquenching, oh my! Materials was so much fun... OK, not really.

My wife told me to buy 3M last year. I should have listened.

[TXnMA]

Is there any information on the TCE (Thermal Coefficient of Expansion) of these new glasses? I can't help but wonder how they compare with the (~7 ppm/degree C ) TCE of polycrystalline alumina ceramics...

I would expect the match to be close enough that these glasses would make good "windows" in hermetic ceramic packages for optically erasable E-PROMS and various types of optical sensors and emitters.

[sinclair]

That was my exact thought when I read the headlines also.

   

[CROSSHIGHWAYMAN]

There be whales

[Jeff F]

Acording to Fiona, Scotty doesn't know...

[Larry Lucido]

And, thanks to Freeper Eepsy for confirming that transparent aluminum foil hats are now a possibility.

[RS]

Old news...


Beer In Aluminum Bottles On The Way ^
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1198736/posts

[Fudd]

The resulting glass beads, which were less than 140 microns across, were then heat-treated -- or sintered -- at around 1000°C. This produced bulk glass samples in which nanocrystalline alumina-rich phases were dispersed throughout a glassy matrix. The new method avoids the need to apply pressures of 1 gigapascal or more, as is required in existing techniques.

140 microns is about as small as many people can see. 1 gigapascal is a h*** of a lot of pressure. Scotty, I don't think we're building whale tanks yet!

[machman]

Hello computer.

[Captain Beyond]

bump