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The Thinnest Paper in the World
- Jaruzel 7y agoMirror: http://archive.is/Pq1XY http://archive.is/Pq1XY
- mirimir 7y ago> ... with an ethanol-activated adhesive brushed onto one side ... I wonder what they use. And how they know that it's long-term stable. Searching "tengujo ethanol adhesive" just gives me TFA and derivatives.
- Luc 7y agoProbably some Lascaux acrylic adhesive. It becomes stickier when ethanol is applied to it.
- pampa 7y agoDoctor Yueh put an object on the table between them - black, oblong, no larger than the end of Paul's thumb. "It is a very old Orange Catholic Bible made for space travelers. Not a filmbook, but actually printed on filament paper. It has its own magnifier and electrostatic charge system." He picked it up, demonstrated. "The book is held closed by the charge, which forces against spring-locked covers. You press the edge - thus, and the pages you've selected repel each other and the book opens."
- kragen 7y agoThere are many thinner materials: 10-micron aluminum foil is commonplace in households, and disposable plastic shopping bags are usually about the same thickness, while this paper is 20 microns. Any of these could fit Yueh's 1800-page book into the thickness of Paul's thumb, 18-36 mm. But typical gold leaf is 0.1 nanometers thick, a hundred times thinner. What's notable about this paper is that it's paper that thin.
- downerending 7y agoI'd like a wafer that thin.
- kragen 7y agoHave you thought about trying thin-film amorphous semiconductors?
- downerending 7y agoNah, I'm full.
- kragen 7y agoJust a thin film, sir!
- downerending 7y agoWell, perhaps just a micron or two...
- oxfeed65261 7y agoYou would still explode ofc.
- kragen 7y agoEven if it's not mint?
- N1H1L 7y agoThe number for gold leaf cannot be right. The unit cell spacing for gold is around 0.4 nm. At 0.1nm you will have monolayer gold. By the way, the first monolayer metals were synthesized just last year, and published this March in Nature Materials.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- nubero 7y agoI knew without clicking that it had to be Japanese… fascinating product…
- Wildgoose 7y agoI find it interesting that they use mulberry trees, seeing as silkworms famously feed on mulberry trees as well and the end products are somewhat similar.
- thomas 7y agoReminds me of Tomoe River Paper [0]. They originally made paper for industrial purposes but now sell it to fountain pen users. It’s made in japan as well, and unlike any paper I’ve seen produced elsewhere. [0] https://unsharpen.com/company/tomoe-river/ https://unsharpen.com/company/tomoe-river/
- lioeters 7y agoHere's the company Hidaka Washi mentioned in the article: https://www.hidakawashi.com/jp/paper-TENGU/index.html https://www.hidakawashi.com/jp/paper-TENGU/index.html They make "tengu jo-shi" (典具帖紙), the world's thinnest paper, also called "the wings of a Mayfly". Around the beginning of the 20th century they achieved a thickness/thinness of 0.03 millimeters. The paper became popular for typewriter paper, as well as napkins, wrappers for precious stones, coffee filter, lens polishing, calligraphy, pressing flowers, fish printing. Some paper varieties: https://www.hidakawashi.com/jp/items/index.html https://www.hidakawashi.com/jp/items/index.html After World War II, its popularity waned with the decline of typewriters. However, in recent years it was discovered that the papar was suitable for restoration of paintings, sculptures, and historical documents. It's been used to restore murals of Michelangelo, and works in the Louvre.
- agumonkey 7y agowhile we're on thin and japan companies, youtube taught me about Disco, the wafer slicing disc company. Such a "trivial" problem in definition yet very impressive when you think about it.
- ChuckNorris89 7y agoWhat I love most about these small engineering companies making high tech niche products is their no thrills, stuck in the 90's websites. Huge contrast to dark pattern based websites dedicated to selling stuff to consumers. I guess they just don't bother since it'll make no difference to their bottom line. They're well known in their niche and probably as the only go-to solution for this kind of problem, I imagine the likes of Intel and TSMC have them on speed dial so their products sell without marketing or fancy websites.
- agumonkey 7y agoI like that too. I naturally dislike marketing tricks, and enjoy seemingly old or bland but technically worthy things.
- jfacoustic 7y agoSo... How many times can you fold it?
- yboris 7y agoReminds me of the Japanese Kezuroukai - Thin Shaving Competition (Wood Planing) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ubv3kS9fhs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ubv3kS9fhs
- Namari 7y agoThey're making toilet paper thinner everydays ...
- Cerium 7y agoIf you would like to buy some in the US, Hiromi paper carries this paper.
- kebman 7y agoI found this thing: Hamada Washi, a 150-year tradition of Japanese paper making, 28 Feb 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYNDNS8eTC4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYNDNS8eTC4 I think it was too short, but for the moment it lasted, it fulfilled my life.