Crystal nuclei beaten to the punch Amorphous nanoparticles often dissolve more rapidly than their crystalline counterparts, which can be useful in applications such as drug delivery. Amstad et al. made amorphous nanoparticles from organic and inorganic compounds—even table salt—using droplets of dissolved compounds created with a microfluidic nebulator. The solvent evaporates fast enough that nanoparticles form before crystal nuclei can develop. The small particle size inhibits crystallization for periods of months Science , this issue p. 956