Microscopic magnetic-field imaging of a single lunar dust grain

作者：Yibo Yang, Lin Xing, Zengrong Zhou, Yunze Zhou, Kelei Zhu, Shiyang Lyu, Yuqin Wang, Xu Tang, Jinhua Li, Jiandong Feng · 发表于：Fundamental Research · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1016/j.fmre.2025.12.007 · 被引用次数：1 · 研究领域：Geomagnetism and Paleomagnetism Studies、Planetary Science and Exploration、Astro and Planetary Science

The origin of lunar magnetic anomalies—whether remnants of an ancient core dynamo or impact-induced magnetizations—remains debated due to a critical observational gap linking microscopic magnetic carriers to macroscopic orbital measurements. Conventional measurements lack sufficient spatial resolution or vector information at the sub-particle scales, obscuring the detailed micromagnetic signatures of formative geological events. Here, we report the first microscopic magnetic imaging (MMI) of individual lunar dust grain returned by the Chang’e-5 mission using a custom-designed quantum-sensing-based high-resolution microscopy, which simultaneously satisfies optimized sensitivity at 2.09-3.39 μT·Hz -1/2 , spatial resolution of 2.2 μm and field of view at 1 × 1 mm 2 . Leveraging this, we precisely resolve magnetic field distributions with individual carriers, revealing magnetization processes linked to potential geological events at the sub-particle level. Preliminary quantitative magnetic analyses across these heterogeneous rock types further elucidate the possible historical events occurring at the task sampling site. Our approach enables imaging-based analysis of the magnetism of a single lunar dust grain and offers direct magnetism insights into the historical events from a microscopic perspective.