PubMed ID: 25588062
Author(s): Wang Y, Mi H, Zheng Q, Ma Z, Gong S. Graphene/phase change material nanocomposites: light-driven, reversible electrical resistivity regulation via form-stable phase transitions. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2015 Feb 4;7(4):2641-7. doi: 10.1021/am507700r. Epub 2015 Jan 23. PMID 25588062
Journal: Acs Applied Materials & Interfaces, Volume 7, Issue 4, Feb 2015
Innovative photoresponsive materials are needed to address the complexity of optical control systems. Here, we report a new type of photoresponsive nanomaterial composed of graphene and a form-stable phase change material (PCM) that exhibited a 3 orders of magnitude change in electrical resistivity upon light illumination while retaining its overall original solid form at the macroscopic level. This dramatic change in electrical resistivity also occurred reversibly through the on/off control of light illumination. This was attributed to the reversible phase transition (i.e., melting/recrystallization) behavior of the microscopic crystalline domains present in the form-stable PCM. The reversible phase transition observed in the graphene/PCM nanocomposite was induced by a reversible temperature change through the on/off control of light illumination because graphene can effectively absorb light energy and convert it to thermal energy. In addition, this graphene/PCM nanocomposite also possessed excellent mechanical properties. Such photoresponsive materials have many potential applications, including flexible electronics.