Light bulbs made using graphene to start selling later this year

New Delhi: Light bulbs made with the use of graphene will go on sale later this year, becoming the first commercially available consumer product to use the supermaterial.

Researchers at the Manchester University have developed the innovative light bulb that uses a filament-shaped LED which is coated in graphene. The bulb can be dimmed and is capable of providing brighter light than the conventional LEDs.

A report on Gizmodo noted that the bulb consumes up to 10 per cent less electricity and lasts longer than the regular bulbs. It is expected that the bulb will cost less than $20 when it hits the market.

Graphene was isolated at The University of Manchester in 2004 by Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov, earning them the Nobel prize for Physics in 2010. It is still difficult to make graphene in large qualities, which make items that use it in bulk incredibly expensive. However, as the new light bulb uses a small quantity, it is economical to produce.