By Cay Leytham-Powell

Principal investigator
Yiming Hu

Funding
National Science Foundation (NSF);National Natural Science Foundation of China

Collaboration + support
JILA; Liquid Crystal Materials Research Center; Qingdao University of Science and Technology

For over a decade, scientists have attemptedto synthesize a new form of carbon calledgraphyne with limited success. That endeavor,though, is now at an end, thanks to newresearch from Wei Zhang’s lab at CU Boulder.

Graphyne has long been of interest to scientistsbecause of its similarities to the “wondermaterial” graphene—another form of carbonthat earned the 2010 Nobel Prize in physics.

However, despite decades of work, only a fewfragments had ever been created before now.

This new research fills a longstanding gap incarbon material science, potentially openingbrand new possibilities for electronics, opticsand semiconducting material research.

“This could be the next-generation wondermaterial,” Zhang said. “That’s why people arevery excited.”

Image: Crystal structure of a layer of graphyne.

Image byYiming Hu