Strength and flexibility is coming via Samsung, a group of researchers for the global company said on April 4, reporting they have developed a new technique for producing graphene, an ultra-thin material that is extremely flexible but sturdy. The discovery brings the product's commercialization potential closer to the public.
According to the researchers from Samsung Electronics, graphene is desirable due to its bendable nature, a thin screen that offers flexibility and strength for devices and lightweight packaging. Many at Samsung hope that the new technology will help it outpace competitor Apple in the battle for smartphone supremacy.
According to a report published by the Wall Street Journal, the company's executives "have described the current products as a foreshadowing of a new era of wearable and bendable devices. Graphene is the thinnest material known, but it is also extremely good at conducting electricity and heat."
What this means for potential customers could be endless. The company hopes that through harnessing this super-material, it can help transition to wearable and other "next-generation" electronic devices. This would also push it out in front of Apple, the company Samsung has been battling for months over patents.
Experts believe that companies who are able to harness graphene -- first discovered in 2004 and believed to be the strongest material in the world, stronger than diamonds and hundreds of times stronger than steel -- could be a massive step in redirecting how devices are created and made.
Apple did not comment on Samsung's revelations, but Samsung did not mince words on its belief in the importance of the discovery as a means of creating revolutionary devices that would enable users to have much more functionality through the flexible material.
The company called the discovery by its researchers as "one of the most significant breakthroughs in graphene research in history."
Here in Silicon Valley, the reports have been met with optimism that it could translate into a new wave of design and function on a myriad number of devices. Tech experts believe that it could see lighter, sturdier devices that would enable users to have complete control of their products without fear of breaking or snapping. It also could give display devices a boost in the transition to larger, curved products that offer more viewing area.
In many ways, the battle for the next best technology is heating up, quite literally. Graphene is a major electrical conductor, which could help power Samsung products using less energy than Apple and other competitors.
