Researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) have patented and are commercializing a method by which gallium arsenide (GaAs) nanowires are grown on graphene.
The method, which was described and published in the journal Nano Letters ("Vertically Aligned GaAs Nanowires on Graphite and Few-Layer Graphene: Generic Model and Epitaxial Growth"), employs Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) to grow the GaAs nanowires layer by layer. A video describing the process can be seen below.
"We do not see this as a new product," says Professor Helge Weman, a professor at NTNU^.s Department of Electronics and Telecommunications in the press release. "This is a template for a new production method for semiconductor devices. We expect solar cells and light emitting diodes to be first in line when future applications are planned."

Whether it is a method or a product, Weman and his colleagues have launched a new company called Crayonano that will be commercializing the hybrid material that the researchers developed.

The researchers contend that replacing traditional semiconductor materials as a substrate will reduce material costs. The silicon materials are fairly expensive and are usually over 500µm thick for 100mm wafers. As the video explains, using graphene reduces the substrate thickness to the width of one atom. Obviously reduction in material is really only a side benefit to the use of graphene. The real advantage is that the electrode is transparent and flexible, thus its targeting for solar cells and LEDs.

Interestingly Weman sees his teams work as a compliment to the work of companies like IBM that have used graphene “to make integrated circuits on 200-mm wafers coated with a continuous layer of the atom-thick material.”

Weman notes: "Companies like IBM and Samsung are driving this development in the search for a replacement for silicon in electronics as well as for new applications, such as flexible touch screens for mobile phones. Well, they need not wait any more. Our invention fits perfectly with the production machinery they already have. We make it easy for them to upgrade consumer electronics to a level where design has no limits."

As magnanimous as Wemans invitation sounds, one can not help but think it comes from concern. The prospect of a five-year-development period before a product gets to market might be somewhat worrying for a group of scientists who just launched a new startup. A nice licensing agreement from one of the big electronics companies must look appealing right about now.