Folding Nanosheets To Build Components 29
Nakeot writes "In the continuing efforts to build faster and smaller components, a group of researchers at MIT have constructed a basic prototype device that folds materials only hundreds of microns across. Mechanical engineer and Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering George Barbastathis leads the charge into 'nano-origami' machines involving, the article reads, 'a new technique that allows engineers to fold nanoscale materials into simple 3-D structures' (more details available on MIT's page). The group had worked in 2005 with MIT Associate Professor Yang Shao-Horn to build a single-fold nano-capacitor (PDF, or see Google's HTML version), and this work appears to automate their 2005 process. A comment on the posted video appears to suggests this device is not completely automated yet, however. (This should not be confused with Paul Rothemund's slightly-more-ahead DNA-origami technology.)"
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A popular belief holds that it is impossible to fold a sheet of paper in half more than 7 times, possibly due to the difficulty of performing even 6 folds. This belief was debunked by then high school student Britney Gallivan who successfully folded a piece of paper 12 times in "Single Direction Folding".[1] However, some argued that the folder should fold in half, turn 90 degrees, then fold in half again, rather than folding the same way.
The television series MythBusters "busted the myth" of the 7 fold limit by folding taped-together sheets in half and turning 90 degrees each time, for a total of 11 folds. The first eight folds were completed by hand, while the rest were completed using both steam rollers and fork lifts. [2][3] This was accomplished using 17 large rolls of paper taped together to form a very large yet relatively thin "sheet."