graphene

Some tech just sounds too good to be true. A removable, wireless sensor that adheres to dental enamel and can detect trace amounts of harmful bacteria just might fall into the too-much-information category for the squeamish among us.

But the silk, gold, and graphene-based sensor that looks a bit like a temporary tattoo could play a key role in detecting and treating various diseases and conditions, the developers at Princeton University say.

"This is a real-time, wireless response from a sensor that can be directly interfaced with a variety of biomaterials," principal investigator Michael McAlpine, an assistant professor … Read more

Swiss scientists say they have a new candidate for making flexible electronic devices, after they successfully manufactured the first molybdenite microchip.

The integrated circuit was made at the Laboratory of Nanoscale Electronics and Structures (Lanes), of the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne. Yesterday, the researchers said it showed how molybdenite microchips could be made smaller than silicon chips, use less electricity than silicon, and be more flexible than silicon, the mainstay of today's computers.

The flexibility of molybdenite could also make it suitable for creating rollable computers or devices that can be attached to a person's skin, the … Read more

Rice University researchers are bending graphene to meet their needs with a technique that promises progress on the road to nano-scale electronic circuits.

In a paper published yesterday in Nature Communications, researchers describe a way to alter graphene into "hybrid superlattices," a material potentially suitable for electronics and optical devices.

Graphene, which is a one-atom thick layer of carbon atoms interconnected in a honeycomb structure, is touted as a wonder material for a variety of uses, including faster and smaller electronics. As a material, it has excellent electrical conductivity but because it is a semimetal, researchers are still … Read more

A mesh of one-atom-thick graphene foam could become man's best friend in sniffing out explosives.

The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute announced last week the creation of a graphene material that is 10 times more sensitive when detecting gases than current sensors used by bomb squads. It's also robust and can be made cheaply, according to its inventors.

Using the material to sense ammonia and nitrogen dioxide gases given off by explosive devices could lead to more sensitive and long-lasting tools for bomb detection. It can also be modified for industrial and medical uses in which sensors detect leaks of … Read more

Windows 7 slate by Christmas? Seriously? FLO TV really didn't, your iPhone could be our new set top box, Panasonic takes another run at gaming, WebOS could be moving into a mansion, and you've finally got your jet pack, alright? Now stop whining.

Two researchers received the Nobel Prize in physics today for their work on graphene, a super-thin sheet of carbon atoms that has unusual and potentially useful properties.

Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov, currently professors at the University of Manchester, won the top physics prize for their work on isolating graphene from graphite--a more ordinary form of carbon used in pencils--and characterizing its behavior.

Graphene holds potential for profoundly transforming materials science--everything from computer chips and flexible displays to solar cells and lighter aircraft. Such products aren't on the verge of hitting store shelves, but the research is active--for example, … Read more

Smaller, faster gadgets may be cool, but keeping them from getting too hot poses challenges.

Consumer electronics, of course, contain many sources of heat, including interconnecting wiring and millions of transistors. In the past, bigger and bigger fans have been employed to keep chips from overheating, thus expanding a gadget's lifespan. But as electronics continue to shrink, so does the space where fans can be placed.

Enter graphene, a sheet of densely arranged carbon that's just a single atom thick and boasts strong heat-conducting properties. Researchers at UC Riverside's Nano-Device Laboratory have discovered a way to layer … Read more

IBM Research on Friday announced that it has demonstrated a radio-frequency graphene transistor with the highest frequency so far: 100GHz.

Graphene is a special form of graphite, consisting of a layer of carbon atoms packed in honeycomb lattice. In a nutshell, graphene is like "atomic scale chicken wire." Graphene's properties could lead to faster transistors.

IBM's paper, which is being published in Science, details how the latest graphene breakthrough could enable new communications devices and electronics. The paper was penned by Phaedon Avouris, IBM Fellow and manager of the company's nanometer-scale science and technology research … Read more

While Twitter has announced a sort of a business plan, President Obama is ripping off Digg for an Internet town hall meeting, and Windows 7 may be getting a release candidate in May, we really don't care. Because we have some hardcore physics stories about buckyballs and hardware neuron simulators.

Twitter to be a freemium service http://www.businessinsider.com/twitter-confirms-paid-pro-accounts-on-the-way-2009-3

AT&T exec: ISP will never terminate service on RIAA’s word http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10204514-93.html

Windows 7 Release Candidate coming in May http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7965513.stm… Read more