Institut Laue-Langevin

A new technique for understanding quantum effects in water

Use of oxygen isotope substitution will lead to more accurate structural modelling of oxide materials found in everything from biological processes to electronic devices. A publication in Physical Review letters.

It covers over two thirds of our planet, is essential for life on Earth and its chemical formula is one of the few most people can name, but we still have much to learn about the structure of H2O. Now, scientists working in Grenoble have developed a new technique using oxygen isotopes to study in detail the structure of disordered oxide materials such as water in biological processes or glasses in lasers and telecommunication devices. This new technique allowed a team from the Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL), University of Bath, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Stanford University to validate a new theoretical model for water's structure by measuring subtle differences between the molecular organisation of light and heavy water that result from quantum mechanics.

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