654877bd_erials_Science_and_Engineering__Significance
[Date] 1981 [Candidate Moment] Heinrich Rohrer and Gerd Karl Binnig invent the scanning tunneling microscope. [Significance] 
Provides three-dimensional atomic-scale images of metal surfaces and quickly becomes widely used in research to characterize surface roughness and observe surface defects.
Greatest Moments in Materials Science and Engineering
Significance