Science Daily August 9, 2018
Graphene nano-ribbons have very different electronic properties depending on their shape and width: conductor, semiconductor or insulator. An international team of researchers (Switzerland, China, Germany, USA -Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute) has succeeded in precisely adjusting the properties of the ribbons by specifically varying their shape. They were able to show that if these ribbons are built with regularly alternating zones of different widths, a chain of interlinked quantum states with its own electronic structure is created by the numerous transitions. The semiconducting nanoribbons would allow transistors with a channel cross-section 1,000 times smaller than typically manufactured today. Other possibilities can be example in the field of spintronics or even quantum informatics… read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE
When graphene nanoribbons contain sections of varying width, very robust new quantum states can be created in the transition zone. Credit: Empa