Graphite is a crystalline allotrope of carbon characterized by a layered structure in which carbon atoms are arranged in hexagonal sheets of sp²-hybridized networks, with strong covalent bonds within layers and weak van der Waals forces between them. This anisotropic bonding yields high electrical and thermal conductivity parallel to the layers, lubricity, and cleavage along basal planes. In research contexts, graphite serves as a precursor and reference material for studying two-dimensional materials such as graphene, intercalation compounds, and electrochemical behavior in batteries, and is widely used as an electrode material, neutron moderator, and model system for investigating electronic band structure and defect-mediated properties in carbon-based solids.
As the BepiColombo mission prepares to enter the final phase of its journey to Mercury, a series of studies conducted by researchers at the University of Liège and KU Leuven sheds new light on the early stages of the evolution ...
Planetary Sciences
Sep 4, 2026
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There is something slightly ridiculous about using a kitchen blender to make graphene. This is, after all, the "wonder material" associated with futuristic technologies. You might reasonably expect its production to involve ...
Nanomaterials
Aug 24, 2026
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Researchers in the Texas A&M University J. Mike Walker '66 Department of Mechanical Engineering have developed a new method for producing graphene oxide, a high-value carbon nanomaterial used in batteries, electronics and ...
Nanomaterials
Jul 6, 2026
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25
The ordinary graphite in pencil lead is proving to be surprisingly multifaceted at the microscale. In a study published in the journal Nature, MIT researchers report that a certain microscopic structure found in natural graphite ...
Condensed Matter
Jun 29, 2026
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Engineers often treat impurities as a problem to eliminate to improve material performance. But new research from Osaka Metropolitan University and Fraunhofer Institute for Mechanics of Materials IWM suggests that in some ...
Nanomaterials
Jun 14, 2026
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Geological faults hold many secrets that may help us answer important questions about the nature of our planet and what really happens deep underground. One of the biggest mysteries lies within the Atotsugawa Fault System ...
Earth Sciences
May 13, 2026
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13
Mining critical minerals such as lithium and cobalt fuels the "green" energy and digital transitions essential to meeting climate goals. But building the technologies that enable a sustainable future is generating severe, ...
Environment
Apr 29, 2026
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27
Nanographenes are organic semiconductor materials used in smartphones, OLED displays, and solar cells. At the molecular level, they are composed of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are a network of connected ...
Nanomaterials
Apr 28, 2026
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13
Researchers have demonstrated a new technique for creating 2D materials that runs at room temperature and increases production rates tenfold over current methods, without using toxic solvents. Scientists led by Dr. Jason ...
Nanomaterials
Apr 27, 2026
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120
Carbon forms the graphite in pencils, the diamonds in jewelry and the molecules that make up every living thing. But under extreme conditions—like the heat and pressure of intense explosions—carbon can transform into exotic ...
Nanophysics
Mar 19, 2026
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