September 15th, 2010
Episode 3 of 583 episodes
Discovered in Manchester just a few years ago, graphene is an atomically thin form of carbon that looks set to transform technology. In the short time it has been known, graphene has been found to be among the toughest of materials, has almost no resistance to electricity, is chemically inert, impermeable to gases and almost completely transparent. Potential uses include the ultimate in nano-electronics, touch screens, hydrogen storage for zero-emission cars, solar panels, DNA sequencing, ultracapacitors for the next generation of electric cars, chemical sensors and much more.