A group of Samsung Electronics researchers claim they've made a breakthrough discovery.
They've found a technique that could help the company make your future
smartphone thinner, more durable, and even a deliver internet 100 times
faster.
The "wonder material" is called graphene- a substance
that's stronger than steel and so thin it's considered to be two
dimensional.
In fact, it's one million times thinner than
paper, according to the American Physical Society. Discovered in 2004,
graphene is made of a single layer of carbon atoms bonded together in
hexagonal patterns.
Samsung's researchers have just discovered a
method that could allow a single crystal of graphene to retain its
electrical and mechanical properties across a large area, the company
said.
In other words, they've found a process that could allow
graphene to be used at its full potential in future electronic devices,
which could include wearables, smartphones and more. Samsung said
graphene will be particularly crucial in developing wearable devices,
such as smartwatches and Internet-connected wristbands, The Wall Street
Journal reports.
Graphene's electron mobility is said to be 100
times greater than that of silicon, the material most widely used in
the components that power many of today's smartphones, tablets and
computers. The Korea-based manufacturer hasn't mentioned exactly how the
discovery will impact its specific future devices, but described it as
"the perfect material for use in flexible displays, wearables and other
next generation electronic devices."
So what exactly does this
mean for the future gadgets? It will most likely keep the components
inside your phone thinner and it could potentially allow for super thin,
transparent screens.
Since graphene is so thin, the
commercialization of it could usher in the slimmest transistors
yet-potentially yielding gadgets that are much sleeker than today's
existing smartphones.
Graphene could also bring flexible
phones, smartwatches and gadgets to the market if its commercialized on a
wide enough scale, as Gigaom reported in July. Since the material is
more durable than steel, phones and future gadgets are likely to be way
less prone to damage than existing devices.
Graphene is said to
deliver Internet to smartphones 100 times faster, according to research
from the University of Bath's Department of Physics. This is
essentially because graphene can convert light faster than the materials
used in today's existing smartphone components. The report explains
that data travels in the form of light when it hits your smartphone, so
the faster it can convert light the faster data can reach you.
The commercialization of graphene also suggests that we'll see wearable
devices that are much different than products on the market today.
Instead of somewhat clunky smartwatches and fitness bands without a
screen, we could see devices that look much more like the iWatch concept
art that's been circulating the Web for months.
It's unclear
exactly when we'll see smartphones and wearable based on graphene, but
Samsung's discovery marks a huge leap toward bringing it to market.
During its Analyst Day in November, the company said it could bring
phones that are completely bendable and foldable to market by 2015.
Samsung has been showcasing its YOUM flexible displays for quite some
time, but it hasn't yet found a way to bring it to market in everyday
consumer gadgets. This discovery could possibly change that.
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