Walter de Heer, a professor of physics at Georgia Institute of Technology, holds a molecular model of graphene in his lab. Photo: Georgia Institute of TechnologyA team of scientists have determined graphene, the same substance found in common pencil lead, can act as a semiconductor—helping set it on the path to one day be turned into computer chips. The research, published in the scientific journal Nature last week, opens up the possibility that graphene, long a subject of scientific study, could be used as an alternative to silicon, the most prevalent material found in chips today.

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Persons: Walter de Heer Organizations: Georgia Institute of Technology