A tiny molecular chain of gold, carbon and phosphorus has tied itself up into the smallest and tightest knot ever seen
By Alex Wilkins
19 January 2024
Chemical structures dictate how a molecule folds up and whether it forms a knot Andriy Onufriyenko/Getty Images
A knot made from gold that crosses over itself three times, known as a trefoil knot, is both the tiniest and tightest knot ever made. The knot contains just 54 atoms, including six gold atoms that form its backbone, and could help us understand how knots form in biological systems.
Knots have been studied by mathematicians for centuries, but it wasn’t until the late…
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