Graphene is material which is comprised of densely packed carbon atoms in the form of a honeycomb crystal lattice which are just one atom in thickness. Under high magnification they have the appearance of chicken wire, but are more than a little sophisticated in their composition than the well-known mesh!
It is probably a word worth remembering because I suspect this relatively new material, discovered and developed at Manchester University (UK), will be something we will all encounter in our lives, one way or another and sometime relatively soon, due its advantageous mechanical and electrical properties. It has yet to be fully realised what its range of applications might be, since new details about its properties are still being investigated by various research establishments so there is probably more to come!
Whatever it is eventually used for remains to be seen, however, judging by what has been discovered thus far I suspect its future applications will make a significant impact on all our lives and the subsequent advancements and offshoots in technology that its properties are bound to bring about.
For more details see: http://onnes.ph.man.ac.uk/nano ~ Answers.com (graphene) ~ GrapheneIndustries.com ~ GrapheneTimes.com ~ Physics.about.com.
BFN,
Steve.
Updated: 20 June 2010.
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