Researchers measure mechanical stresses and strains in graphene-based supercapacitors

Researchers at Texas A&M University recently discovered that when charging a supercapacitor, it stores energy and responds by stretching and expanding. This insight could be help design new materials for flexible electronics or other devices that need to be both strong and store energy efficiently.

The team measured stresses that developed in graphene-based supercapacitor electrodes and correlated the stresses to how ions move in and out of the material. For example, when a capacitor is cycled, each electrode stores and releases ions that can cause it to swell and contract. According to the team, this repeated motion can cause the build-up of mechanical stresses, resulting in device failure. To combat this, the research looks to create an instrument that measures mechanical stresses and strains in energy storage materials as they charge and discharge.

Read the full story Posted: Oct 29,2023

Researchers discover rare multiferroic behavior in five-layer graphene

Researchers at MIT, Harvard and Japan's National Institute for Materials Science have reported a surprising property in graphene: When stacked in five layers, in a rhombohedral pattern, graphene displays a rare, “multiferroic” state, in which the material exhibits both unconventional magnetism and an exotic type of electronic behavior, which the team has named "ferro-valleytricity".

“Graphene is a fascinating material,” said Long Ju, assistant professor of physics at MIT. “Every layer you add gives you essentially a new material. And now this is the first time we see ferro-valleytricity, and unconventional magnetism, in five layers of graphene. But we don’t see this property in one, two, three, or four layers”. The discovery could promote ultra-low-power, high-capacity data storage devices for classical and quantum computers.

Read the full story Posted: Oct 19,2023

Versarien's turnaround strategy to benefit from Gnanomat's new funding

Versarien has reported that its Spanish business has secured funding for a new project, in a boost to the group’s turnaround strategy. The Company said its majority-owned subsidiary, Gnanomat, has been awarded a grant of around €415,000 (around USD$445,660) by a government body.

Gnanomat will use the money to help develop and commercialize a new line of conductive inks based on Versarien's nanomaterials, for use in the production of electronic goods.

Read the full story Posted: Sep 13,2023

MINIGRAPH project aims to pave the way for a new generation of graphene-based adaptive neuroelectronic therapies

The MINIGRAPH project (Minimally Invasive Neuromodulation Implant and implantation procedure based on ground-breaking GRAPHene technology for treating brain disorders) aims to pave the way for a new generation of adaptive neuroelectronic therapies, resolving the most important limitations of current technology. The project revolves around the development of a new generation of graphene-based brain implants.

The project started in October 2022 and will go on for 36 months. It is a HORIZON-EIC project, with an estimated cost of €3,928,402.50. Among its members are ICN2, IMEC, Fraunhofer, INBRAIN Neuroelectronics, MSRL and more. Recently, Scientists from the Czech Advanced Technologies and Research Institute – CATRIN at Palacký University also announced that they will participate in the project.

Read the full story Posted: Aug 16,2023

Researchers use UV-assisted atomic layer deposition to design high-performance graphene-dielectric interface

Researchers from Seoul National University of Science and Technology (SeoulTech) and Kwangwoon University recently used a novel approach called UV-assisted atomic layer deposition (UV-ALD) to treat graphene electrodes. The choice of this technique resulted in the successful production of a high-performance graphene-dielectric interface. 

The research team became the first to apply UV-ALD to the deposition of dielectric films onto the surface of graphene. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) involves adding ultra-thin layers at the atomic scale to a substrate, and its significance has grown considerably as semiconductor components have shrunk in size. UV-ALD, which combines ultraviolet light with the deposition process, enables more dielectric film placement than traditional ALD. However, no one had explored the application of UV-ALD for 2D materials such as graphene.

Read the full story Posted: Aug 11,2023

Researchers develop accelerated synthesis method for ultralong graphene nanoribbons

Researchers from POLYMAT at the University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research and the University of Aveiro have reported an accelerated iterative approach enabling the synthesis of a series of length-controlled, ultralong atomically precise graphene nanoribbons (GNRs). The longest GNR displays a 920-atoms core with a 35.8-nm long (147 linearly fused rings) backbone that has been obtained in just three synthetic steps from building blocks of ∼2 nm in length. 

A Lego-like synthesis previously produced record-breaking nanoribbons of 30, then 53 fused rings. Now, a similar ‘accelerated’ modular methodology made a molecular nanoribbon that is triple the longest ever made – in just three simple steps. The resulting graphene nanoribbon is almost 36nm long, with its 147 linearly linked rings and a conjugated core of 920 atoms. The first experiments, although preliminary, envision applications in electronics and optoelectronics, thanks to fluorescence features that reportedly outperform state-of-the-art quantum dots.

Read the full story Posted: Jul 31,2023

Researchers use printed graphene electrodes for textile-embedded triboelectric nanogenerators for biomechanical sensing

Researchers from Portugal's Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores – Microsistemas e Nanotecnologias (INESC MN), Universidade de Lisboa and the UK's University of Exeter have developed an efficient flexible triboelectric textile by using printed graphene electrodes with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and the textile itself as the triboelectric pair.

To achieve this, the team used a textile planarization technique with a polyurethane adhesive, along with three different deposition methods: graphene droplet films (GDF), graphene immersion films (GIF), and graphene spray films (GSF). 

Read the full story Posted: Jul 16,2023

Researchers develop "e-skin" from graphene and seaweed microcapsules

Researchers at Queen Mary University, University of Sussex and University of Brighton have integrated graphene into seaweed to create nanocomposite microcapsules for highly tunable and sustainable epidermal electronics. When assembled into networks, the tiny capsules can record muscular, breathing, pulse, and blood pressure measurements in real-time with ultrahigh precision.

The team explained that much of the current research on nanocomposite-based sensors is related to non-sustainable materials. This means that these devices contribute to plastic waste when they are no longer in use. The new study shows that it is possible to combine molecular gastronomy concepts with biodegradable materials to create such devices that are not only environmentally friendly, but also have the potential to outperform the non-sustainable ones.

Read the full story Posted: Jun 30,2023

Purdue team develops graphene-based tunable thermal regulators for batteries and electronic devices

Researchers from Purdue University have developed patent-pending, solid-state, continuously tunable thermal devices based on compressible graphene foam composites. The devices can dissipate heat, insulate against cold and function across a wide range of temperatures. 

The devices have the potential to improve battery safety and performance in electronic devices and systems like battery thermal management, space conditioning, vehicle thermal comfort and thermal energy storage.

Read the full story Posted: Jun 13,2023

Researchers develop graphene-based wearable touch panel for virtual-real handwriting interaction

Researchers from China's Qingdao University and Shenzhen University have developed a graphene-based proof-of-concept for a skin-friendly and wearable textile-based touch panel that converts a person's forearm into a keyboard or sketchpad. The three-layer, touch-responsive material translates what a user sketches or types into computer pictures.

Computer trackpads and electronic signature capture devices are not common in wearables. Researchers have proposed constructing flexible touch-responsive panels out of clear, electrically conductive hydrogels, but these materials are sticky, making writing on them difficult and uncomfortable for the skin. As a result, the research team sought to combine a comparable hydrogel into a comfortable fabric sleeve for drawing or playing computer games.

Read the full story Posted: May 05,2023