Carbon is fundamental to science and technology due to its diverse bonding configurations, structural versatility, and essential role in defining the mechanical, chemical, electronic, and quantum properties of materials. However, direct three-dimensional (3D) imaging of individual carbon atoms remains a long-standing challenge. Here, we use twisted bilayer graphene (TBG) as a model system and demonstrate ptychographic atomic electron tomography (pAET) for determining the 3D atomic coordinates of individual carbon atoms with a precision of 0.11 angstrom. The resulting 3D atomic model uncovers chiral lattice distortions driven by van der Waals interactions that exhibit meron-like and skyrmion-like structural textures. These findings provide direct insight into the interplay between 3D chiral lattice deformation and electronic properties in moire-engineered carbon systems. Beyond TBG, pAET offers a versatile approach for 3D atomic-scale imaging of carbon-based and other light-element materials that are central to advances in physics, chemistry, materials science, and nanotechnology.
@article{arxiv.2504.08228,
title = {Three-dimensional imaging of individual carbon atoms},
author = {Na Yeon Kim and Hanfeng Zhong and Jianhua Zhang and Colum M. O'Leary and Yuxuan Liao and Ji Zou and Haozhi Sha and Minh Pham and Weiyi Li and Yakun Yuan and Ji-Hoon Park and Dennis Kim and Huaidong Jiang and Jing Kong and Miaofang Chi and Jianwei Miao},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2504.08228},
year = {2026}
}