As if graphene wasn’t magical enough, researchers have found a way to make it into a superconductor. Typical superconductors require extreme environments, or complex equipment, or exotic materials, and frequently use all of the above. Graphene is carbon, just sheets of carbon. If superconducting graphene can be mass-produced, then the speed, efficiency, and even heat properties of electrical equipment can be dramatically improved. An improved power grid would require less power to be generated because there would be fewer losses. Improved computers would operate faster, and may also require less cooling, allowing them to use less power and possibly become even smaller. As with any materials breakthrough, the research reveals a capability, then development creates applications and devices, frequently ones that are unexpected. The development of graphene has been significant enough, simply for its strength and weight. Now, add power and possibly heat, and quantum effects, and the material becomes the basis for new industries. Will the Graphene Age follow the Age of Silicon, the Iron Age, the Bronze Age?
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