Scientists Develop Lightest Solid Material Ever Which Can Balance On Top Of A Flower

Scientists have developed a solid material so light it can be balanced atop the petals of a flower. Researchers from Zhejiang university in Hangzhou, China, showed off their newly developed graphene aerogel by balancing a block of the stuff on a delicate cherry blossom.

The sponge-like matter is made of freeze-dried carbon and graphene oxide and is the lightest solid material in the world.

With a weight of just 0.16 miligrams per cubic centimeter, it is just twice the density of hydrogen - the simplest of all elements - and less dense than helium.

First developed by two Russian scientists playing about with Scotch tape at Manchester University, graphene has already been hailed as a 'wonder material' that promises to transform the future.

Its discovery earned Professors Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov a joint Nobel prize in physics, with the committee making a special mention of the 'playfulness' of their experiments, and a knighthood each.

In its pure state, the substance is a two-dimensional crystal of pure carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb lattice described by some as 'atomic chickenwire'.

That makes it the thinnest material ever made. You would need to stack three million graphene sheets on top of each other to get a pile one milimetre high.

But this unique structure makes it very light and strong, with a one-square-metre sheet weighing only 0.77 milligrams - yet strong enough to support the weight of a 4kg adult cat.

A sheet of graphene as thin as clingfilm could hold the weight of an elephant. According to one calculation, an Nelly would need to balance precariously on the end of a pencil to break through that same sheet.

Professors Geim and Novoselov serendipitously discovered graphene almost by accident while investigating the electrical properties of carbon graphite - the common material that pencils are made of. Borrowing a technique used by microscopy researchers to clean the mineral before examining it close up, they found they could peel it into ever thinner flakes using Scotch tape.

Professors Andre Geim (left) and Kostya Novoselov: Discovering graphene in the course of research at Manchester University earned the pair a joint Nobel prize in physics and a knighthood each

After repeatedly sticking and peeling back the Scotch tape they realised they could get down to the thinnest layer physically possible - just one atom thick.