Scientists create synthetic benzene using caesium-based artificial atoms.
Researchers in the Netherlands have created 'artificial atoms' using caesium atoms on a semiconductor surface, which can form molecular orbitals similar to those in organic molecules. The artificial atoms could help researchers measure the energies of unstable molecular systems and gain insights into chemical energetics. The researchers arranged the caesium cations into a ring that had an electromagnetic potential analogous to that between atoms, and then arranged them into artificial molecules such as cis and trans butadienes and even artificial benzene. The researchers now want to use this to explore the fundamentals of chemical bonding.