The resulting surfaces, which were paper thin and flexible, were able to absorb sunlight to produce electricity at a level that would rival existing solar panels.
These could be used to create a kind of “coat” on the outside of buildings to generate power needed to run appliances inside while also carrying other functions too, such as being able to change colour.
The researchers are now hoping to develop the technology further by producing a paint that can be put onto the outside of buildings.
But the scientists also say the new material could also allow a new generation of super-thin hand-held devices like mobile phones that can be powered by sunlight.
Professor Kostya Novoselov, one of the Nobel Laureates who discovered graphene, a type of carbon that forms sheets just one atom thick, said: “We have been trying to go beyond graphene by combining it with other one atom thick materials.
“What we have been doing is putting different layers of these materials one on top of the other and what you get is a new type of material with a unique set of properties.
“It is like a book – one page contains some information but together the book is so much more.
by Richard Gray, The Telegraph | Read more:
Photo: The University of Manchester
