Atom-thin layers of carbon can be turned into superconductors — extraordinary materials that conduct electricity without dissipating energy, physicists say. The findings could help lead to advanced magnetic sensors for brain scanning, the researchers added.
The form of carbon found in pencils is graphite, which is made of sheets of carbon stacked atop each other. The sheets are known as graphene, and they are made of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb pattern.
Graphene is extraordinarily strong — about 200 times stronger than steel by weight.
Graphene is also highly electrically conductive, and scientists worldwide are researching whether it could be used in advanced circuitry and other electronic devices.
Although graphene has many spectacular electronic properties, until now superconductivity was a notable exception. Superconductors conduct electricity with zero resistance, and so can lead to more efficient power lines. (Power companies typically lose about 7 percent of their energy to heat caused by resistance in transmission wires.)
Superconductivity was previously seen in graphite. Theoretical models suggested that graphene could also become superconducting, if adorned with additives.
Now, an international team of scientists has created the first-ever superconducting graphene by coating it with lithium atoms.
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