Student’s Discovery Advances Nanotech Research

TECHSTERS!!!!!!! 

A UT Graduate student in Dallas, Texas attained results which could ultimately lead to high-performance nanoelectronics applications such as electron emitters, thermal-infrared night-vision sensors and solar absorbers for harvesting sunlight. :O

What does this mean, I hear you scream? (as you sip your diet coke and eat your chips)

Well fellow tech-ers this could mean that thanks to Muge Acik's work with graphene,we may one be able to  replace silicon in applications like ultrafast transistor with.... wait for it.....

" A Single Sheet of Carbon" (with electronic and mechanical properties obviously). 


How does it work? 
Well making real-world devices from graphene is greate, however it, depends upon controlling the edges of graphene sheets, which often dictate the material's electronic properties. Simply adding oxygen atoms at the edges may turn graphene INTO AN... INSULATOR!! :)


Acik discovered a new infrared absorption mechanism when GO (graphene oxide, for the scientifically challenged readers) is annealed to about 850°C to remove most oxygen. The result was a VERY special arrangement of oxygen atoms at the edges. This stable conifg. fosters the electronic conduction/emission necessary for device operations and for electron emitters.

"This new phenomenon opens the door to tailoring giant infrared absorption at different spectral positions by modifying the nature of the edge termination," she said.

We here at Tech. Up Your Life are simply astounded with Muge's hardwork and discovery. We will indeed be keeping a close eye on her in the future, and will update our fellow techsters immediately, on any new breakthroughs :)