Australian scientist recreates Sydney Opera House in dust

MELBOURNE, Australia (AFP) - Scientists have created the world's smallest model of the Sydney Opera House, so tiny it can only be clearly viewed through an electron microscope.

The model created by Swinburne University researchers Martin Straub and Le Huong Nguyen measures only 60 microns long -- half the width of a human hair -- although it contains intricate details of the Opera House's iconic white sails.

The miniature took just three hours to make by firing a computer-guided photon laser at a liquid mixture of glass and polymer that is then allowed to set.

The result looks like a speck of dust to the naked eye and needs to be magnified 1,900 times by an electron microscope to be seen properly.

Straub said he and Nguyen created the model to show the capacity of the laser technology.

"The potential for such microconstructions is seemingly endless," he said.

"We can produce structures that are smaller than a human cell, which means they could be used to make drug transporters and other devices that can find their way into any part of the human body."

And why the Opera House? "We chose it because we wanted an Australian icon, instantly recognisable in the international community," Straub said.

"It also shows the potential of the process for reproducing highly complex structures, with non-standard features such as overhangs, curved surfaces and lots of details such as tiny steps and the roof tiling."