Introducing the World's Smallest Snowman

Filed in archive Research on December 4, 2009

The UK's National Physical Laboratory has created the world's smallest snowman, measuring 10 µm across.

"This minuscule model -- about a fifth the width of a human hair -- is not made out of snow," writes DVICE's Charlie White. "It's constructed of two tiny tin beads that are usually used to calibrate an electron microscope, and welded together with platinum. It's built by David Cox, a nanotech expert at the Quantum Detection Group of Britain's National Physical Laboratory."

"Sadly, the NPL appears to currently lack the technology to create a nanocarrot or miniature Santa hat, but we have no doubt it's working on a deposited platinum system capable of tackling these decorative shortcomings," notes The Register's Lester Haines.

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