Big things in Michigan

The most complicated crystal structure ever produced in a computer simulation has been achieved by researchers at the University of Michigan. The icosahedral quasicrystal looks ordered to the eye, but has no repeating pattern. At the same time, it's symmetric when rotated, like a soccer ball with five-fold and six-fold patches. Due to their symmetry under rotation, icosahedral quasicrystals may exhibit a photonic band gap making them of interest for displays and optical communications.