Originally posted by Duncan
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It's interesting on a couple of levels. The first is that something new was discovered about electricity in 2009. So when we get discouraged we can think about it and say, yes, there are still new things to be discovered. The second is that it was accidentally discovered. The people that discovered it were working towards something else and when they looked at their data they thought they had incorrect readings from their experiment but it turned out their data collection was correct. It's new enough and unique enough to require a new name for it - "spontelectric phenomenon".
Historic discovery: huge electric field occurs spontaneously in laughing gas
Spontaneous polarization of solid CO on water ices and some astrophysical implications
Spontelectric behaviour - Google Search
At first glance I thought, well it only happens at very low temperatures (appx -200C) so that can't help us because we're looking for something easier to attain at ambient temperature or nearly so. I put it on the back burner in my head for a while and when I looked at it again "cold electricity" popped into my head.
Interestingly, it also requires thin films and works only with specific elements and compounds which kind of gets us back to crystals and crystal lattices.
I thought the reference to "water ices" might trip your switch - forget the "astrophysical".
Interestinger and interestinger...
So, naturalists observe, a flea
Hath smaller fleas that on him prey;
And these have smaller still to bite 'em;
And so proceed ad infinitum.
Thus every poet, in his kind,
Is bit by him that comes behind.
Dean Jonathan Swift
Hath smaller fleas that on him prey;
And these have smaller still to bite 'em;
And so proceed ad infinitum.
Thus every poet, in his kind,
Is bit by him that comes behind.
Dean Jonathan Swift
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