Scientists have created a new material that conducts electricity as effectively as metal but is pliable and can be moulded like plastic or Play-Doh.
The researchers say that the new material can’t currently be explained as it does not fit existing theories.
There are many different types of conductive material, but all were thought to share some similar properties.
Specifically, they are composed of densely packed atoms or molecules that run in straight lines.
This allows the electrons to flow through the structure easily and also means that there is a tendency for the material to be more rigid.
In the new material, the molecular structure is jumbled and disordered, which would usually be associated with poor conductivity.
The fact that it conducts as well as a metal challenges long-held scientific principles regarding conductivity and could represent a paradigm shift in materials science.
Lead study author John Anderson, associate professor of chemistry at the University of Chicago, said that the discovery could open the doors for a new class of materials that are robust, easy to shape and can conduct electricity.
Jiaze Xie, the first author of the study, which was published in the scientific journal Nature, created the material by adding nickel atoms into strings of molecular ‘beads’ made of sulphur and carbon.
Material stayed stable in a wide range of conditions
When it was found to be a stable material that conducted electricity, it was subjected to a wide range of tests, including exposure to a range of temperatures, air, humidity and even acid.
Xie and other researchers came to the conclusion that the material formed layers like the sheets in a lasagne.
Even if these layers were rotated or shifted, electrons are still able to flow as long as the layers touch.
Anderson likened the material to kids’ modelling compound Play-Doh, explaining that it can be ‘smushed’ into place and still retain its conductivity.
The material could change the way that many electronic devices are designed.
Current chip and device design is limited by the fact that metal must be melted into the right shapes, for example, which can damage the other components.
The new material can be made at room temperature, reducing the risks, while its stability means that devices could be made to work in a wider range of conditions.
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