Ninth graders explain how a scanning tunneling microscope works. In this chemistry lesson, 9th graders construct atomic models and simulate how their images appear under the STM. They discuss the limitations of their atomic model.

Gerd Binnig co-developed the scanning tunneling microscope (STM) with Heinrich Rohrer. The STM allowed scientists entry into the atomic world in a new way and was a major advance in the field of nanotechnology. For their achievement,...