The world of science is always evolving. Every day scientists discover new things that can revolutionize the world as we know it. If you ever wondered what is the world’s strongest and thinnest material, wonder no more. The answer to that question is graphene, “the wonder material”. This form of carbon conducts electricity and heat better than any other materials out there and it’s not only the hardest material but also the most flexible.
Graphene has been called the “wonder material” and it’s only a single atom thick. Some believe that this wonder material could revolutionize the electronics industry in the near future.
Graphene was discovered 10 years ago but scientists started to take interest in it in 2010 when two scientists won the Nobel Prize for their experiments using the graphene material.
Graphene the wonder material is said to be 200 times stronger than steel and so thin that only an ounce of it can cover over 28 football fields. This is one of the few materials that is conductive, transparent and flexible and scientists say that it’s very rare to find all these properties in one material.
Scientists say that graphene will be soon used for thinner, faster and cheaper electronics, electronics that are silicon based, only the graphene ones will be clearer and more flexible. Graphene can also be used for waterproof batteries.
At the moment researchers are working on sensors made with graphene like light sensors, gas sensors and biosensors, making them smaller than ever. Graphene can also make cellphones very thin and foldable.
Samsung is said to have figured out a way to create graphene transistors which will be used for making flexible displays, next generation wearables and other modern electronic devices.
But Samsung is not the only company working with the wonder material. Researchers at Nokia and IBM are experimenting with graphene in order to create memory storage, transistors and sensors. A professor at Columbia University discovered that graphene is so flexible that it could stretch by 20% and still be able to conduct electricity. The professor compared this to silicon which can only stretch by 1% before it breaks.
With all these “wonder” properties one would think that graphene costs a fortune, but it doesn’t. Every electronic device available on the market could be made smaller, cheaper and smarter with graphene.
Graphene the wonder material makes better earphones
Last year at the University of California in Berkley scientists created graphene speakers that deliver the sound at a better quality than a pair of Sennheiser earphones and the graphene speakers were a lot smaller too.