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Description
Physicist Philip Wallace first investigated the theory explaining the existence of graphene in 1947, while he was studying the electronic properties of graphite. However, graphene wasn't actually discovered until 2004 by physicists Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov. Graphene consists of a single layer of carbon atoms connected together in a lattice resembling a honeycomb or chicken wire. Graphene is the building block for man-made atomic structures such as the soccer-ball-shaped molecules called buckyballs.
Strength
According to physicist Michio Kaku, graphene is 200 times stronger than steel. In 2008, Columbia University mechanical engineering professors James Hone and Jeffrey Kysar discovered graphene's immense strength by measuring the force it took to break it. In their test, they carved tiny holes in a silicon wafer and placed a sheet of graphene over each hole. Researchers then pressed on each sheet of graphene with a sharp diamond probe until the graphene broke. Hone compared the test to measuring the strength required to poke a pencil through a sheet of plastic wrap stretched across a coffee cup. According to Hone, a piece of graphene stretched across the same cup could support an elephant balancing on the pencil. However, Hone and Kysar don't believe graphene will ever be used for large-scale projects, because it only exhibits its superstrength in small amounts.
Properties
Besides its strength, graphene has several other properties that intrigue scientists and engineers. At room temperature, graphene is the best conductor of electricity known to mankind. Graphene is one of the thinnest possible materials and, like rubber, it can be stretched about one-quarter of its length. It has the largest known surface area for a material of its weight.
Potential Uses
Engineers and scientists have conceived of many potential uses for graphene. For example, computer chip engineers believe graphene may replace silicon as the basic material for the tiny transistors used in computer chips. In 2008, the team that discovered graphene invented a transistor one atom thick and 10 atoms across -- smaller than the smallest transistor engineers can make with silicon. In theory, graphene computer chips would be smaller, faster and more heat resistant than silicon chips. Scientists at Cambridge University believe graphene's light conducting properties could aid in producing solar cells, LEDs, flexible touch screens and high-speed lasers. Other potential applications include composite materials for lighter aircraft and satellites, more efficient batteries, better plastics, stronger medical equipment, leak-tight food storage containers and better sports equipment.