Wooden wonder
RESEARCHERS at Linkoping University, in association with the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm (KTH), have succeeded in developing the world’s first wooden transistor.
A transistor is a basic electronic component, usually made of pure silicon, that controls or amplifies electrical voltages and currents.
They are found in all electronic devices, sometimes on microscopic scales.
The challenge here was to make the wood capable of conducting electricity.
To achieve this technological feat, the researchers used balsa, a grainless wood with an even structure.
They extracted the lignin from it, thus accentuating the presence of cellulose fibres.
They then filled the empty channels with a conductive polymer or plastic (PEDOT:PSS) so that the wood block itself would become electrically conductive.
In the end, this first-ever wooden transistor is “slow” and “bulky”, the researchers admitted.
But the main accomplishment is that it functions and is able to regulate electricity flow without deteriorating.
Therefore, it can serve as a basis for other exciting future developments.
Indeed, there are numerous advantages to this type of wooden transistor.
Compared to silicon, wood is a sustainable and renewable material, which means that it’s a much more environmentally friendly solution.
Secondly, the large transistor channel could be suitable for regulating electric plants.
However, the researchers took care to point out that they “didn’t create it with any specific application in mind” but rather that it falls into the category of “basic research”, showing that something is possible.
The research is published in an article in the journal PNAS .–AFP Relaxnews