Harnessing Quantum Power through Atomic Flaws.

Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have found new ways to harness the quantum power of defects in boron nitride, a material that forms sheets so thin it can be considered two-dimensional. By bombarding microscopic flakes of the material with atoms of helium, the researchers created tiny gaps that naturally fill with electrons that are highly sensitive to their surroundings, making them potentially useful as quantum sensors. The boron nitride sensors could be used in a wide variety of substances, from geologic to biologic, and could be applied at room temperature.