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Bacteria help produce nanomaterial for computers

24.07.2019

Scientists from the UK and the Netherlands have come up with a new way to get nanomaterials from graphene: mix oxidized graphene and bacteria. Their method is economical, less time consuming and also environmentally friendly compared to the chemical production of the material. The method could lead to the creation of innovative computer technology and medical equipment, according to the website of the University of Rochester.

To create new and more efficient computers, medical devices and other advanced technologies, researchers are turning to nanomaterials - materials controlled at the scale of atoms or molecules that have unique properties. One such revolutionary compound is graphene, a two-dimensional form of carbon. This thin carbon flake has extraordinary mechanical strength and flexibility and is able to easily conduct electricity. However, we cannot yet actively fold graphene in everyday life: it is very difficult to produce it on a large scale. And not only from an economic point of view: graphene obtained in large quantities is denser and loses its unique properties.

Graphene is mined from graphite, the material used in regular pencils. At exactly one atom thick, graphene is the thinnest yet strongest two-dimensional material known to science. In 2010, scientists from the University of Manchester received the Nobel Prize in Physics for groundbreaking experiments with graphene: they were able to make graphene by exfoliating graphite with a simple adhesive tape. However, their method produced a small amount of material.

To produce more graphene materials, a team of researchers led by Anne Meyer, an assistant professor of biology at the University of Rochester, started with a vial of graphite. They gradually flaked off the graphite to graphene oxide, which was then mixed with Shewanella bacteria. They left the vial of bacteria and graphene oxide overnight, during which the bacteria converted the material into graphene by removing the oxygen groups.

Graphene oxide itself is a poor conductor of electricity, but it is easy to produce. And bacteria-derived graphene is not only a good conductor, it's also much thinner and more stable than chemically-derived graphene. In addition, it can be stored much longer.

The graphene nanomaterial has many applications. It can be used to produce field effect transistor (FET) biosensors. FET biosensors are devices that detect biological molecules and can be used, for example, for real-time glucose monitoring in diabetic patients.

Bacteria-derived graphene material could also be the basis for conductive ink, which could in turn be used to make faster and more efficient computer keyboards, circuit boards, or small wires. According to Meyer, the use of conductive ink is "an easier and more cost-effective way to produce electrical circuits than traditional methods." Conductive ink can also be used to create electrical circuits over non-traditional materials such as fabric or paper.

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Chinese scientists have developed a technology for controlling robotic equipment by recognizing brain activity. Control accuracy is impressive and accessible even without special training. In practice, the new technology will be implemented in a future Chinese orbital station, allowing the taikonauts, for example, to control a huge robotic arm with the power of one thought.

We are talking about simulation, not about the control of real mechanisms. However, there is only one step from simulation to real technology, and it will soon be taken.

During the experiment, 35 volunteers had to mentally control a segmented robotic arm. Of this number, 11 participants immediately coped with the task. It is important to note that 27 test subjects had no experience in operating such devices at all, but after a little training, they were also able to control the mechanism with the highest accuracy.

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