It's closeness that counts: how proximity affects the resistance of graphene

Graphene is seen as the wonder material of the future. Scientists can grow perfect graphene layers on square centimetre-sized crystals. Researchers from the University of Göttingen, together with the Chemnitz University of Technology and the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt Braunschweig, investigated the influence of the underlying crystal on graphene's electrical resistance. Contrary to previous assumptions, results show that the process known as the 'proximity effect' varies considerably at a nanometre scale. Results were published in Nature Communications.