Science
The Guardian's Science Weekly

Is graphene really worth the hype – science weekly

Nicola Davis investigates what makes graphene the ‘wonder material’ and whether it can bring commercial success to the UK

EPSRC Photography Competition Innovation category 1st – Graphene ink - and overall winner James Macleod, University of Cambridge The ‘Wonder material’ graphene is a sheet form of carbon that is a single atom thick. Among its many remarkable properties it is a superb conductor of electricity. However, it is difficult to mass produce. One way to overcome this problem is to process powdered graphite in alcohol to produce conductive ink, which can be used in inkjet printers to print electrical circuits on paper. Alternatively, other chemicals can be added to it so that it can be used for screen printing on bendable plastic sheets to make components for flexible electronics. The ink in this photo is forced at high pressure through micrometre-scale capillaries made of diamond. This rips the layers apart and we end up with a smooth, conductive material in solution.
Photograph: James Macleod, University of Cambridge/EPSRC Photography Competition

Presented by and priduced by and Gabriela Jones

Subscribe & Review on iTunes, Soundcloud, Audioboom, Mixcloud & Acast, and join the discussion on Facebook and Twitter. If you’ve enjoyed this podcast why not recommend it, or any other podcasts you’ve loved to podcasts@theguardian.com to be in with a chance of featuring in our Hear Here column.

In this week’s show we look at the the wonder material graphene – what is it good for and is it all it is cracked up to be? We also explore the challenges and pitfalls of getting it out of the laboratory and into products and ask whether graphene, first isolated by researchers in Manchester, is likely to be a commercial success for the UK.

In the studio we have materials scientist and author of Stuff Matters Professor Mark Miodownik of University College, London, and physicist and blogger on science and science policy, Professor Richard Jones from the University of Sheffield. Joining us down the line is Cinzia Casiraghi, professor in nanoscience of Manchester University, who works closely with the University’s National graphene Institute.

Topics