First transport measurements reveal intriguing properties of germanene

Germanene is a 2D material that derives from germanium and is related to graphene. As it is not stable outside the vacuum chambers in which is it produced, no real measurements of its electronic properties have been made. Scientists at the University of Groningen have now managed to produce devices with stable germanene. The material is an insulator, and it becomes a semiconductor after moderate heating and a very good metallic conductor after stronger heating.