Posted on 05/24/2013 9:49:30 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
Graphene has dazzled scientists, ever since its discovery more than a decade ago, with its unequalled electronic properties, its strength and its light weight. But one long-sought goal has proved elusive: how to engineer into graphene a property called a band gap, which would be necessary to use the material to make transistors and other electronic devices.
Now, new findings by researchers at MIT are a major step toward making graphene with this coveted property. The work could also lead to revisions in some theoretical predictions in graphene physics. The new technique involves placing a sheet of graphene – a carbon-based material whose structure is just one atom thick – on top of hexagonal boron nitride, another one-atom-thick material with similar properties. The resulting material shares graphene’s amazing ability to conduct electrons, while adding the band gap necessary to form transistors and other semiconductor devices.
“By combining two materials we created a hybrid material that has different properties than either of the two. Graphene is an extremely good conductor of electrons, while boron nitride is a good insulator, blocking the passage of electrons. We made a high-quality semiconductor by putting them together,” said Pablo Jarillo-Herrero, the assistant professor of physics at MIT.
To make the hybrid material work, the researchers had to align, with near perfection, the atomic lattices of the two materials, which both consist of a series of hexagons. The size of the hexagons (known as the lattice constant) in the two materials is almost the same, but not quite: Those in boron nitride are 1.8% larger. So while it is possible to line the hexagons up almost perfectly in one place, over a larger area the pattern goes in and out of register.
(Excerpt) Read more at xbitlabs.com ...
Sticky problem snares wonder material - Graphene-like form of silicon proves hard to handle.
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Aligning two sheets ,....each one atom thick,.....weee bit more work to do!
Silicon on Insulator is a pretty amazing precise technology....but they have been able to do that one.
Bump for later
Boron Nitride and Graphene to make a semiconductor.
Well... maybe they could wrap it up, or glue it together with Silicene ?
Thanks for posting. Interesting and promising technology.
Graphene’s the future.
Yes, super-capacitors, making composite tubing even stronger, maybe even solar cells.
Boron Nitride, if I am not mistaken is being used by the Israeli's for Nano Oil additive that is a quite the friction reducer.
Great, now I can build a Boronator!!!
Why not skip the middle man( a US Corp that will off shore the process eventually anyway) and give the CHiComs the formula and the technology directly. / sarc
Has anybody made a commercially viable product yet?
Had I read this a week back I would have questioned my cousin’s son who will be graduating this week from MIT with an undergrad in physics, as to if he had any part in some of the research being conducted on these emerging potential technologies.
I dunno, Ernest. Sounds like 2/3ds of gunpowder ................................................................................. FRegards
Thanks Ernest.
Graphene’s the future.
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Enormous possibilities across a wide range of applications. Potentially a good long term investment IF you can find the right companies involved in its commercial development.
Quite the friction reducer - close to a perpetual motion machine??
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