The Smallest Mona Lisa painting

Painting's enigmatic and perhaps the most widely reproduced images in the history of art. But Mona Lisa repro result this time is very special because painted on canvas which sized very small, ie 30 microns, or one-third the width of a human hair.

The 30-micron Mona Lisa 
demonstrates a technique 
that could potentially be used 
to achieve nano-manufacturing 
of devices. (Picture from: 
http://www.natureworldnews.com/)

By using the latest nano technique, researchers created a miniature painting of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa. The molecular-sized masterpiece created with an Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) through a process called ThermoChemical NanoLithography (TCNL).

The painting by Keith Carroll from Georgia Tech and colleagues proves that it is possible to create nanoscale devices using the latest technique as it could control concentration of molecules on small-scale. Currently, it is difficult to achieve the desired chemical concentration on a small-length scale.

Each 125 nanometer pixel of "Mini Lisa" represents a series of limited chemical reactions. This technique makes the research team can control the amount of heat applied to each pixel to distinguish the number of new molecules made ​​at each point. The higher the heat, the more molecules and gray shades increasingly bright. In this way, the team can create a small copy of the Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece pixel by pixel.

To make the nanoartwork, researchers used an atomic force microscope (AFM) modified with a thermal cantilever. The AFM scanner allows for precise positioning on the nanoscale while the thermal cantilever induces local chemical reactions. (Picture from: http://www.livescience.com/)

In a report that published in the Langmuir journal, the microscopic artwork is a demonstration of the TCNL ability to create a variety of molecular concentration on a very small scale. The researchers considered this technique can be applied to nanoscale manufacturing. 

"We envision that the TCNL can create gradient patterns of another physical and chemical properties, such as graphene conductivity," said the study's researcher, Jennifer Curtis. "This technique allows a variety of experiments that were previously inaccessible and applications in various fields, such as nanoelectronic, optoelectronic, and bioengineering." *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | LIVESCICENCE | KORAN TEMPO 4312]

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