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What is graphene and how was it isolated?

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A labeled diagram of the periodic table entry for carbon, showing its atomic number 6, symbol C, electron configuration, atomic weight range, solid physical state, hexagonal crystal structure, and weakly acidic oxide properties. Color coding and icons indicate it is a nonmetal, solid at room temperature, with hexagonal structure and weak acidity. — carbon Carbon and its properties.

Graphene is a two-dimensional form of crystalline carbon consisting of a single layer of atoms arranged in a hexagonal (honeycomb) lattice. It serves as the parent material for other graphitic structures, including graphite, nanotubes, and buckyballs.1

In 2004, physicists Konstantin Novoselov and Andre Geim at the University of Manchester successfully isolated single-layer graphene using a simple exfoliation technique known as the "scotch-tape method". By applying adhesive tape to a sample of graphite, they were able to remove thin layers and transfer them onto a substrate material. When the tape was removed, individual layers of graphene remained on the substrate.12

This breakthrough allowed for the study of graphene's unique physical properties, such as its high electron mobility, which earned Geim and Novoselov the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2010.12