Graphene

Angstron Materials announced that they have been awarded a $1.494 million projec to to develop processes for mass-producing chemically modified (“functionalized”) Nano Graphene Platelets (NGP) for a nearly limitless number of applications in the aerospace, energy, defense, automotive and telecommunications markets. Angstron was selected for the award by the U.S. Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Angstron developed NGPs as an alternative to carbon nanotubes, which are difficult to disperse in plastic and often have purity issues—not to mention the cost factor. NGPs have been shown to have striking material properties; among other things, it has the highest intrinsic strength and ... Read Full Story

Vorbeck materials announced that it has received EPA approval to manufacture Graphene as a conductive additive for inks. EPA’s approval, which was granted under the terms of the Low Exposure, Low Release Exemption Rule (LoREX), enables the company to offer Vor-ink, a highly conductive, versatile, and low-cost, conductive ink, for commercial sale to the printed electronics industry. Read Full Story

Chemists from the University of Illinois at Chicago managed to use nano water droplets to mold Graphene into desired shapes. Using different sized water droplets and shapes of graphene flakes, the chemists managed to fold it in different shapes. They say it's similar to the way proteins are folded in biological cells with the help of chaperone proteins. Via BioScienceTechnology Read Full Story

First, it was the soccer-ball-shaped molecules dubbed buckyballs. Then it was the cylindrically shaped nanotubes. Now, the hottest new material in physics and nanotechnology is graphene: a remarkably flat molecule made of carbon atoms arranged in hexagonal rings much like molecular chicken wire. Not only is this the thinnest material possible, but it also is 10 times stronger than steel and it conducts electricity better than any other known material at room temperature. These and graphene's other exotic properties have attracted the interest of physicists, who want to study them, and nanotechnologists, who want to exploit them to make novel electrical and mechanical devices. ... Read Full Story

Fujitsu Laboratories also developed a process for forming transistors that use graphene as the channel material, as outlined in the picture. This process is independent of wafer size, so it can be applied to large-scale substrates. 1. First, an iron catalyst is formed into the desired channel shape, using a conventional photolithographic process. 2. Graphene is then formed on the iron layer via CVD. 3. Source and drain electrodes of titanium-gold film are formed at both ends of the graphene, thereby “fixing” the graphene. 4. Next, just the iron catalyst is removed using acid, leaving the graphene suspended between the source and drain electrodes, ... Read Full Story