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Fluorine in Shark Teeth: Its Direct Atomic‐Resolution Imaging and Strengthening Function
Author(s) -
Chen Chunlin,
Wang Zhongchang,
Saito Mitsuhiro,
Tohei Tetsuya,
Takano Yoshiro,
Ikuhara Yuichi
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.201307689
Subject(s) - fluorapatite , fluorine , materials science , resolution (logic) , electron microscope , cathode ray , electron , chemistry , mineralogy , optics , apatite , physics , computer science , metallurgy , quantum mechanics , artificial intelligence
Atomic‐resolution imaging of beam‐sensitive biominerals is extremely challenging, owing to their fairly complex structures and the damage caused by electron irradiation. Herein, we overcome these difficulties by performing aberration‐corrected electron microscopy with low‐dose imaging techniques, and report the successful direct atomic‐resolution imaging of every individual atomic column in the complex fluorapatite structure of shark tooth enameloid, which can be of paramount importance for teeth in general. We demonstrate that every individual atomic column in shark tooth enameloid can be spatially resolved, and has a complex fluorapatite structure. Furthermore, ab initio calculations show that fluorine atoms can be covalently bound to the surrounding calcium atoms, which improves understanding of their caries‐reducing effects in shark teeth.