This Powder Costs $140 Million Per Gram, Making It The Most Expensive Item On Earth

Discover the secret behind a material so rare that just one gram is worth tens of millions of dollars!

Damjan

• Published in Technology
• October 10, 2024

When thinking about the world's most valuable substances, gold and diamonds usually come to mind. These materials have been symbols of wealth for centuries, and their value has made them highly sought after.

However, what if the most expensive substance on Earth isn’t something you'd expect, like a precious metal or gemstone? Surprisingly, it's a material that takes the form of a powder and is more valuable than anything you might typically think of.

While luxury items like truffles, saffron, and caviar are known for their high price tags, and industrial materials such as platinum and tritium can be pretty costly, none of these come close to the material known as Nitrogen Atom-Based Endohedral Fullerenes.

This scientific marvel can sell for an astounding $140 million per gram, making it far more valuable than traditional wealth items. Nitrogen Atom-Based Endohedral Fullerenes, developed by researchers at Oxford's Designer Carbon Materials, isn’t something you’ll hear mentioned in everyday conversations.

Most people might never need to say its name—it’s not something one could easily afford. However, the value of this material lies in its potential to transform technology in ways that could shape the future.

The sky-high price tag of this material comes from its potential applications. Specifically, Nitrogen Atom-Based Endohedral Fullerenes could revolutionize the development of atomic clocks.

Atomic clocks are crucial to global navigation and the functionality of GPS systems. However, they are massive, often the size of an entire room, which limits their use in smaller, portable devices.

An illustration of a buckminsterfullerene atom highlights its unique cage-like structure.

What makes Nitrogen Atom-Based Endohedral Fullerenes so exciting is that it could enable scientists to create atomic clocks small enough to fit into everyday gadgets like smartphones. If this becomes a reality, atomic clocks could become even more precise and widespread.

Such miniaturized clocks could improve the accuracy of GPS systems, making it possible to pinpoint locations with incredible precision. This advancement could also eliminate GPS blind spots by having devices carry their atomic clocks, allowing for enhanced navigation in areas where GPS signals are weak or unavailable.

Researchers at Oxford created the material.

But what exactly are Nitrogen Atom-Based Endohedral Fullerenes? Its structure is the key to understanding its remarkable potential.

The material consists of carbon atoms arranged in a structure known as a fullerene, which resembles a cage. Inside this "cage" is a nitrogen atom, which gives the material unique properties. The term "fullerene" refers to the architect and philosopher Richard Buckminster Fuller, whose designs featuring interconnected triangles in a geodesic dome are reflected in the molecular structure of fullerenes.

It's not something magical like gold dust.

While it may not be something the average person will ever hold or even see, Nitrogen Atom-Based Endohedral Fullerenes represent an exciting frontier in scientific discovery. Their potential to change how we use technology, particularly in the realm of timekeeping and navigation, could make them one of the most important materials of the future.

Though its name may be a mouthful, the innovations it could lead to will likely leave a lasting impact on the world.

Damjan