Graphene is a one-atom thick sheet of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb lattice structure. It is the thinnest material possible and is very strong and flexible. In 2004, Geim and Novoselov discovered graphene by peeling layers of graphite with Scotch tape. Graphene has excellent electrical and thermal conductivity and is transparent, making it promising for applications like batteries, touchscreens, solar cells, LEDs, and ultracapacitors.

2. • Graphene is an allotrope of Carbon (Like Diamond) but
arranged in a very thin (one atom thick) planar sheet of
bonded carbon atoms densely packed in a honeycomb
lattice structure.

3. • A great way of thinking about Graphene is to start with
a standard pencil and draw a line on a piece of paper.
Most pencils are made using Graphite for their core and
nearly every one of us has drawn a line on paper with a
pencil. Therefore, we have all experienced and ‘made’
an extremely thin layer of Graphite on the paper – and
a single layer of one-Atom thick Graphite sheet is in fact
Graphene.

4. • Scientists had previously discovered single-layered
carbon structures, such as rolled up sheets of carbon
known as nanotubes and hollow balls of carbon
commonly called fullerenes or buckyballs. But few
believed that single sheets of carbon could be produced;
They were thought to be too unstable.
• That's where ANDRE GEIM and KONSTANTIN
NOVOSELOV came in. They took a hunk of graphite
and used Scotch tape to peel off layer after layer after
layer. Geim and Novoselov then analyzed what they had
left, and found graphene. For their discovery – which
was published in 2004 – they were awarded the 2010
Nobel Prize in Physics.

5. • Graphene is the thinnest material possible. Its
thickness does not exceed that of an individual
carbon atom, and for all intents and purposes can
be considered two-dimensional. Graphene is thus
very flexible and can be reshaped and folded
into tubes according to compatibility, thus reducing
the size and portability.
• As it does not have any band gap so it has high
electrical and thermal conductivity. This
property makes it a very good material to be used
in batteries and touch screens and is essential to
the development of the next generation of
computing.

6. • Because graphene is only one atom thick, pure
graphene is transparent. This property could lead to
graphene being used to create transparent electrodes
for light-based applications such as LED's or vastly
improved solar cells.

7. • Besides being the thinnest possible
material, graphene is also one of the strongest at
more than 200 times the strength of steel.
Researchers at Columbia University's Foundation
School of Engineering said recently that "It would
take an elephant, balanced on a pencil, to break
through a sheet of
• graphene”.

8. ULTRACAPACITORS:
• Today's batteries are increasingly an issue. They
constantly need to be recharged, hold comparatively small
amounts of energy, and deteriorate quickly. Graphene may
provide an alternative in the form of ultra capacitors.
•Graphene based ultra capacitors could store more energy,
more efficiently than current batteries. Additionally, ultra
capacitors have a longer life, are lighter, more flexible, and
are easier to maintain. Imagine not having to recharge your
computer for days, or your cell phone for months, all while
never having them get too hot, or having to replace the
battery!

9. SOLAR CELLS:
Thin films of graphene could provide a cheap
replacement of the conventional photovoltaic and could
produce excellent Solar Cells due to its high electrical
and thermal conductivity, including no band gap.

10. NEXT-GENERATION
DISPLAYS:
Researchers at Stanford University have successfully
developed a brand new concept of flexible organic
lighting-emitting diodes (FOLEDs) with a few nanometer
of graphene as transparent conductor. This could pave
the way for inexpensive mass production of FOLEDs on
large-area low cost
flexible plastic
substrate,
which could be
rolled up like
wallpaper and
applied virtually
anywhere.

11. Lower cost of display screens in
mobile devices :
Researchers have found that graphene can replace
indium-based electrodes in flexible organic light
emitting diodes (FOLED). These diodes are used in
electronic device display screens which require low
power consumption. The use of graphene instead of
indium not only reduces the cost but eliminates the use
of metals in the FOLED, which may make devices
easier to recycle.

12. Foldable flat screens and unbreakable
mobiles
•Graphene is also flexible having high tensile strength,
which paves the way for foldable flat screens and mobile
cell phones that can be dropped without their screens
breaking.
Lithium-ion Batteries That Recharge Faster:
•These batteries use graphene on the surface of the anode
surface. Defects in the graphene sheet (introduced using a
heat treatment) provide pathways for the lithium ions to
attach to the anode substrate. Studies have shown that the
time needed to recharge a battery using the graphene
anode is much shorter than with conventional lithium-ion
batteries, thus increasing the life of the battery also.

13. Graphene flat screens a year from now?
Soon the super-thin material
will part company with the
white lab coats and flasks
to join you in front of your
sofa in the shape of even
thinner and faster-reacting
flat screens replacing
conventional LCD’s and
LED’s.

14. • Although only seven years have passed since
scientists became able to produce and examine
graphene in free form, research has already come so
far that the first screens made from graphene could
be ready to go into mass production.
• "It may not be very
long until we will be using
transparent electrodes
made of graphene in
commercial products.
Graphene might
be used in flat screens
a year from now”.

15. A Step towards the future…
• Mobile Companies like Samsung and Nokia have
taken up the graphene technology and decided to
blend it with the smart phones bringing out a wide
difference in its look and features.

16. • The next generation Smartphones will have flexible
touch screens, resizable and foldable body, large
battery backup with a longer life, auto charging
capacity and great looks which would definitely leave
the gizmo enthusiasts spellbound and rock the mobile
space with the extraordinary features.

17. Conclusion
• Though graphene has not touched our
commercial lives yet, it has great potential and will
eventually come around to us. Besides that’s how
most great inventions and scientific advancements
work, they are discovered followed by a large
stretch of time when nobody finds a use, followed
by a significant invention. Rest assured, whether
or not graphene replaces silicon as the material of
the generation, it will still help engineers greatly
advance technology and is a worthwhile
discovery.

18. References
• http://www.iupac.org/
• http://www.graphene.manchester.ac.uk/
• http://onnes.ph.man.ac.uk/nano/Publications/
Naturemat_2007Review.pdf
• http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?
cntn_id=111341&org=NSF&from=news
• http://www.google.com/
• http://www.youtube.com/