Arie Halpern: material magic that can revolutionize the technology – Terra Brasil

The new technologies do not arise only through the objects that we use to interact with the world, but also by means of the materials that we find to give shape to our ideas. Researchers have already discovered new elements with properties of revolutionary, with great resistance, lightness and ability to conduct electrical current more efficiently that the materials that we use today. These materials may be the future of our technology. “Each time we find new materials, we are able to evolve the capacity of our technology,” says Arie Halpern. “Materials magic, such as graphene, may be the most interesting discovery of the century”.

The highlight of the new materials discovered by science is graphene, which seems to have come straight out of a science fiction movie. In 2004, Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov, professors at the University of Manchester, used adhesive tape to separate pieces of graphite until the remaining only one atom thick. So we came up with graphene, a material composed of carbon atoms and that contains some “special powers”. He is one of the materials stronger, lighter, and more thin, already known by mankind, in addition to being transparent, elastic and have electrical properties and optical. Several companies and laboratories are studying the material, betting that he will be the main raw material of the technology in the future, present in smartphones, computers and other gadgets.

Another movie star who wowed the scientists is the so-called spider silk, or spider silk”. Although similar to the silk produced by silkworms, the strands of the spider are stronger and up to five times more resistant than steel, in addition to being flexible, and do not elicit allergic reactions in human beings. Even with so many qualities, the material proved impractical for large-scale use, since it can not be recreated in the laboratory. To obtain this raw material it is necessary to count with the provision of the spiders produce the silk thread. Despite this limitation, for Arie Halpern the material can serve as an inspiration for scientists to create new components.

the youngest member of The list of materials magic is the atomic hydrogen in metal. Two physicists at Harvard University have announced at the beginning of this year, the creation of the element in the laboratory for the first time, but the feat was regarded with skepticism by the scientific community worldwide. The existence of hydrogen in a state the metal was first discovered a hundred years ago, however until now nobody had been able to produce it physically. To transform the hydrogen gas into atomic hydrogen in metal, the scientists prensaram a small amount of the element to a temperature of -270°C, with a pressure that is 5 million times greater than the atmospheric pressure at sea level. The gaseous hydrogen passed to the liquid, then solid, until the bonds between the atoms are broken, forming a crystalline structure and making the electrical conductor, a typical feature of metals. It is believed that the element has properties metaestáveis, which means that if the pressure is removed, it will keep the metal form, becoming a superconductor. “If the stability of metallic hydrogen is proven, we can save a lot of energy that is normally dissipated during their driving,” explains Arie Halpern.