An alloy of chromium, cobalt and nickel (CrCoNi) is the toughest material ever tested, and its characteristics could make it useful in the construction of aircraft or spacecraft.
Toughness is a measure of a material’s resilience against fracturing, and it isn’t the same thing as hardness, which is a measure of a material’s ability to withstand deformation. For instance, you can’t put a dent in a diamond, famously known to be the hardest material yet discovered, but you might be able to crack one. …