Ella Marushchenko

Fireflies glow. So does plankton in a breaking wave. Both come from the same small molecule: a square of two carbon and two oxygen atoms that breaks apart and gives off light. Researchers at Stanford found that if you pull on that square instead of heating it, it breaks in the opposite order from what everyone expected. The carbon bond goes first, then the oxygen. It still emits light, just by a route nobody knew was there. That opens the door to materials that glow to warn you before they crack. We made the animation for the press release: This animation shows a pulling force, indicated by arrows, applied to a molecule of bis(adamantly)-1,2-dioxetane. The strain breaks the carbon–carbon bond (in gray) of the core structure. Then, the oxygen - oxygen bond (in red) breaks, causing a remaining piece to become unstable and emit a photon of blue light to return to a more stable state. If you have a result that needs showing, we'd be glad to help. Read more:

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