New research into graphene, an atom-thick layer of carbon atoms that has fascinated scientists working in the electronics industry, has found that the material exhibits high current capacity and thermal conductivity.
A team from the Georgia Tech found that in widths as narrow as 16 nanometers, graphene has a current carrying capacity approximately one thousand times greater than copper.
"Graphene nanoribbons exhibit an impressive breakdown current density that is related to the resistivity," commented Raghunath Murali, a senior research engineer at Georgia Tech's nanotechnology research centre.
He added: "The data we have developed so far looks very promising for using this material as the basis for future on-chip interconnects."
The team also found that graphene nanoribbons have a thermal conductivity of more than 1,000 watts per meter Kelvin for structures less than 20 nanometers wide.
As nature's thinnest elastic material, graphene has been touted as a possible material for creating the next generation of electronic components, semiconductor circuits and even computers.