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Graphene 'Big Mac' — One Step Closer To Microchips

Posted by timothy on from the chips-with-vinegar-on-the-side dept.

RogerRoast writes "Scientists at the University of Manchester have come one step closer to creating the next generation of computer chips using graphene. By sandwiching two sheets of graphene with another two-dimensional material, boron nitrate, the team created the graphene 'Big Mac' – a four-layered structure which could be the key to replacing the silicon chip in computers. The research results were published in Nature Physics (abstract; full version paywalled)."

4 of 50 comments (clear)

  1. Not boron nitrate. . . by MagusSlurpy · · Score: 4, Informative

    . . . but boron nitride. I'm also worried by the fact that I knew our summary was wrong without even looking at the abstract.

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    My sister opened a computer store in Hawaii. She sells C shells by the seashore.
  2. Full paper free on arXiv by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    http://arxiv.org/abs/1107.0115

  3. Re:two-dimensional material? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    While in the more comman usage of the term, it would seem that a two-dimensional material cannot exist in space, graphene has a "two-dimensional" atomic structure, making a single atom layer possible. Of course if that thickness isn't zero, it means there are still three dimensions, but it's still a common terminalogy, for whatever reason.

  4. Re:Two Dimensional? by MagusSlurpy · · Score: 4, Informative

    Graphene is referred to as being "two dimensional" because the thickness is typically controlled to one atomic layer thick along the z axis, while it extends infinitely (comparatively) along the x and y axes.

    --
    My sister opened a computer store in Hawaii. She sells C shells by the seashore.