Scientists from the University of Manchester have tied the tightest knot using molecular strands.

The knot is composed of 192 atoms looped with eight crossings and is described as "10,000 times thinner than a human hair," making it the most constricted knot ever made in the history of science. Using the "self-assembly" technique, a criss-cross of molecular strands and metal iron closed by a chemical catalyst is achieved.

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Atomic threads are mixed with chloride and iron ions in a solvent to create a knot in approximately 24 hours. Other elements that can be found in the knot include hydrogen, chlorine, and nitrogen atoms.

The author of the study David Leigh said: "the strands that we're knotting are so small that you can't grab the ends and mechanically tie them like you would a shoelace." He explained that the technique they used enables simultaneous knotting of billions of molecular strands. Using X-ray crystallography, the structure of this very thin knot can be confirmed.

The goal of the study is to create stronger and more pliable polymer strands. Leigh said that the process of tying knots and weaving is similar which makes weaving in molecular level possible by tying knots made of molecules.

"For example, bullet-proof vests and body armor are made of Kevlar, a plastic that consists of rigid molecular rods aligned in a parallel structure - however, interweaving polymer strands have the potential to create much tougher, lighter and more flexible materials in the same way that weaving threads does in our everyday world," he explained.

This tight knot is regarded as a scientific breakthrough as the "eight-crossings molecular knot is the most complex regular woven molecule yet made by scientists," Leigh said. In fact, it broke the record once held by the "trefoil knot," a three-crossing pointed knot made of 160 atoms which was also set by Leigh and his team four years ago.

The study titled "Braiding a Molecular Knot with Eight Crossings" was published in the journal Science.

Watch this video below to check out the structure of the world's tightest knot.