3D Printing/ Additive Manufacturing
Article

Rare Crystal Shape Found to Increase the Strength of 3D-Printed Metal

by
National Institute of Standards and Technology
June 5, 2025
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Summary

NIST researchers have found special atomic patterns called quasicrystals in 3D-printed aluminum alloys.

Andrew Iams saw something strange while looking through his electron microscope. He was examining a sliver of a new aluminum alloy at the atomic scale, searching for the key to its strength, when he noticed that the atoms were arranged in an extremely unusual pattern. “That’s when I started to get excited,” said Iams, a materials research engineer, “because I thought I might be looking at a quasicrystal.”

Not only did he find quasicrystals in this aluminum alloy, but he and his colleagues at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) found that these quasicrystals also make it stronger. They published their findings in the Journal of Alloys and Compounds.

The alloy formed under the extreme conditions of metal 3D printing, a new way to make metal parts. Understanding this aluminum on the atomic scale will enable a whole new category of 3D-printed parts such as airplane components, heat exchangers and car chassis. It will also open the door to research on new aluminum alloys that use quasicrystals for strength.

What Are Quasicrystals?

Quasicrystals are like ordinary crystals but with a few key differences.

A traditional crystal is any solid made of atoms or molecules in repeating patterns. Table salt is a common crystal, for example. Salt’s atoms connect to make cubes, and those microscopic cubes connect to form bigger cubes that are large enough to see with the naked eye.

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National Institute of Standards and Technology
National Institute of Standards and Technology

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) was founded in 1901 and is now part of the U.S. Department of Commerce. NIST is one of the nation's oldest physical science laboratories. Congress established the agency to remove a major challenge to U.S. industrial competitiveness at the time — a second-rate measurement infrastructure that lagged behind the capabilities of the United Kingdom, Germany and other economic rivals. From the smart electric power grid and electronic health records to atomic clocks, advanced nanomaterials and computer chips, innumerable products and services rely in some way on technology, measurement and standards provided by the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Today, NIST measurements support the smallest of technologies to the largest and most complex of human-made creations — from nanoscale devices so tiny that tens of thousands can fit on the end of a single human hair up to earthquake-resistant skyscrapers and global communication networks.

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