Carbon Atoms in a Period

name         Susan
status       Teacher
grade        other
location     OH

Question -   Approximately how many carbon atoms (one atom
thick) would "fit" on the period at the end of a standard text sentence?
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Susan,

Let us say that the carbon atoms are solid spheres with the radius 
equivalent to its Van der Waal's radius (approximately 
0.17nanometers). Let us say that a 12 font size period has a radius 
of about 0.25millimeters . . . I think you can do the math.

Greg (Roberto Gregorius)
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Hi Susan,

I will start with the assumption you are referring to
graphite, since graphite and diamond have different crystal
structures, hence will yield different answers. I measured
the period size in my local newspaper, and it is almost dead
on 0.5mm diameter. Graphite is composed of layers or sheets
of carbon atoms 1 atom thick, arranged in adjoining hexagon
"cells", much like honeycomb appears when looking at it. It
is generally agreed that the average distance between any one
carbon atom and its neighbors in a graphite crystal is 1.42
Angstroms (or 1.42 x 10^-7 mm).

Therefore one can see that with a bit of arithmetic and a
little simple trigonometry, it works out that approximately
7.5 x 10^12 (that is, 7.5 trillion) carbon atoms arranged as
a single graphite crystal, one layer thick, will fit in a
0.5mm diameter circle (the size of a printed period).

Regards,

Bob Wilson.
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