Graphene Will Change the Way We Live by Michio Kaku October 6, 2010, 5 06 !

The theory behind the substance graphene was first explored by theoretical physicist Philip Wallace in 1947 as kind of a starting point when he was doing research trying to understand the electronic properties of more complex, ! graphite" although the name graphene wasn#t actually coined until 4$ years later, where it was used to describe single sheets of graphite" %n other words, it#s the name gi&en to a flat monolayer of carbon atoms that are tightly packed into a '! honeycomb lattice( like a molecular chicken)wire that is one atom thick" %t#s essentially the basic building block for graphitic materials of all other dimensionalities( it#s a stepping stone to building bigger things" *raphene in itself howe&er wasn#t disco&ered until '$$4 in its full obser&able and testable form" +ince then, in the past , years, scientists ha&e disco&ered that the substance retains some ama-ing properties" +ome say that it will be heralded as one of the materials that will literally change our li&es in the '1st century" .ot only is graphene the thinnest possible material that is feasible, but it#s also about '$$ times stronger than steel and conducts electricity better than any material known to man/at room temperature" 0esearchers at 1olumbia 2ni&ersity#s 3u 3oundation +chool of 4ngineering who pro&ed that graphene is the strongest material e&er measured said that 5%t would take an elephant, balanced on a pencil, to break through a sheet of graphene the thickness of +aran Wrap"5 %f you follow my work, you ha&e surely heard me speak about 6oore#s 7aw and the race to find a suitable replacement for silicon semi)conductors" *raphene may in fact be the answer to these problems" The fastest growing problem facing chip engineers around the world is that e&eryone wants to increase power, make chips smaller and achie&e both of these without significantly rising the temperature" The de&elopment of graphene transistors would in theory be able to run at much faster speeds and be able to ultimately battle the heat at a microscopic scale" 8ust yesterday, two scientists( 9onstantin .o&oselow and :ndre *eim, were awarded the '$1$ .obel Pri-e in physics for their pioneering work on the disco&ery of graphene" The award acknowledged graphene#s promise to re&olutioni-e the electronics industry and the potential production of lightweight, stronger)than)steel materials among a long list of other coming applications" Putting things into perspecti&e, *eim states that he would 5compare this situation with the one 1$$ years ago when people disco&ered polymers" %t took some time before polymers went into use in plastics and became so important in our li&es"5 "n#re Gei$ %le&t' an# Kon(tantin )ovo(elov %right' an# an arti(t*( i$pre((ion o& a corrugate# graphene (heet+ Potential applications for the material include the replacing of carbon fibers in composite materials to e&entually aid in the production of lighter aircraft and satellites( replacing silicon in transistors( embedding the material in plastics to enable them to conduct electricity( graphene)based sensors could sniff out dangerous molecules( increasing the efficiency of electric batteries by use of graphene powder( optoelectronics( stiffer)stronger)lighter plastics( leak)tight, plastic containers that keep food fresh for weeks( transparent conducti&e coatings for solar cells and displays( stronger wind turbines( stronger medical implants( better sports e;uipment( supercapacitors( impro&ed conducti&ity of materials( high)power high fre;uency electronic de&ices( artificial membranes for separating two li;uid reser&oirs( ad&ancements in touchscreens( 71!#s( <74!#s( graphene nanoribbons could be a way to construct ballistic transistors( and nanogaps in graphene sheets may potentially pro&ide a new techni;ue for rapid !.: se;uencing" :s % stated, this is only a short)list/imagine some of the applications that ha&en#t been examined yet= %magine the implications >ust on the computer re&olution alone" %?6 has already demonstrated a 1$$*@- graphene)based transistor and stated that a 1T@- processor is on the hori-on" The future of graphene holds limitless possibilities into literally e&ery corner of industry and manufacturing, and as the years pass it will likely become a commonplace substance, the way that plastic is today"