The packing of shapes has drawn the attention of humankind since ancient times. A Sanskrit work from 499 ad reveals the first-known mathematical study of the face-centred cubic arrangement of spheres ...

At the University of Minnesota, a team led by Andreas Stein has developed a new process for the production of nanoscopic cubes and spheres of silicon dioxide. The researchers report their trick in the ...

This press release is also available in German. Porous nano-objects with defined sizes and structures are particularly interesting, for example, as capsules for enzymes, a means of transport for ...

The tetrahedron is the simplest of all polyhedra. Any four points in space that are not all on the same plane mark the corners of four triangles. The triangles in turn are the faces of a tetrahedron.