Princeton researchers get one step closer to carbon circuits

Researchers at Princeton have developed a way to put transistors on a carbon substrate called graphene they say could one day replace silicon -- and lead to circuits 10 times faster than today's. Professor Stephen Chou and graduate student Xiaogan Liang are behind the research, which involves patching together tiny, 100-micrometer sections graphene together to form sheets large enough to print circuits on. Chou and Liang say the tech could immediately benefit wireless devices, resulting in lower power consumption and stronger signals in smaller devices. Optimistic estimates still have production-grade applications a couple years out, however -- looks like we're stuck with our ridiculously high-powered silicon until then.

[Ghen @ Dec 20th 2007 1:05PM]

Every technology that comes out says they will make chips 10 times faster than todays. The phrase is starting to loose meaning.

[Ghen @ Dec 20th 2007 1:05PM]

Wow, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that the engadget avatars are insanely large and I love it =)

[Adam @ Dec 20th 2007 2:33PM]

You know what else will lose meaning? The word "lose" when a billion people spell it "loose".

[packetsniffer @ Dec 20th 2007 11:33PM]

@Adam
Thank you for being the grammar police in my stead.

[Flashpoint @ Dec 20th 2007 1:09PM]

until I can play CRYSIS on my cellphone none of this theoretical computing means JACK !

[Howdy Doody @ Dec 20th 2007 3:38PM]

Word.

[Matthew Hilario @ Dec 20th 2007 1:29PM]

I HAVE THE POWWWWAAA! HE-MAN.

[Froggy @ Dec 20th 2007 2:00PM]

10 years from now this shit will get scary.

[wrabbit @ Dec 20th 2007 2:02PM]

Maybe I'm remembering my high school chemistry wrong but doesn't carbon conduct electricity? Shouldn't circuits be printed on non-conductive materials?

[Arnie @ Dec 20th 2007 2:26PM]

Carbon conducts electricity in its graphite form in which it has one electron free to conduct electricity. However most forms of carbon cannot conduct electricity(diamond for ex). Carbon can form very stable bonds with lot of chemicals which are also non-conducting. I am pretty sure that is the case here.

[Reader @ Dec 20th 2007 2:54PM]

I don't really understand how a different board affects speed at all... Is it because it cools better?

[Peace @ Dec 20th 2007 3:38PM]

I think that the following from Websters dictionary should loose the subject,

Loose \Loose\, n.

1. Freedom from restraint. [Obs.]

Perhaps there are Losers among us

[9bit @ Dec 21st 2007 2:13AM]

Princeton doesn't matter.