E: data + Jmol puzzlers

The objective of this project is the construction of Jmol models for one-to-one comparison with experimental nanomicroscopy data. The goals are to inspire the design of classroom explorations and empirical observation challenges, as well as perhaps to help out a bit with research here and there. Check here instead for a set of related nanomicroscopy, powers-of-ten and spacetime challenges centered around a Mathematica-based applet with stronger zooming and reciprocal space capabilties, but less dedicated to atoms in direct space.

Although you can of course just "look at the pictures", the microscopy data presented in images here is intended for quantitative use e.g. for making comparative measurements on captured or printed images by hand or with image analysis programs. Hence you can assume that relative sizes and angles in the images provided are largely intact. Note: Many of the Jmol models offer a right-click menu which lets you remove perspective effects in them as well. We intend to make this model collection reliably available for as long as possible, as well as to add rubrics for application in classroom settings and new models as well. Hence suggestions on how to make them work for your applications would be most welcome.

A screen shot from our Jmol diffraction simulator is shown below. The weblink to an unknown lattice to explore may be found here. The basic idea is that the Java controls (not mobile-friendly), once enabled, allow one to tilt the direct lattice in synchrony with a slice of the reciprocal-lattice to get a sense of the way that electron diffraction patterns manifest as a function of a nano-cluster's orientation with respect to the incident electron beam.

Other Jmol models relevant to experimental data generated by our group are also available for example on the web here. Many will not be accessible at the moment, however, as we are only beginning to migrate them to signed Java applets which may be the only way around getting them to work. 

The good news is that there is also hope of migrating to more mobile-ready HTML5/JS platforms, downstream. A bit more surgery to the code may be required for that, however, so stay tuned...