Carbon: Graphyne created through organic chemistry Continued from page 1A using a chemical called acetylene, pro ducing a specific variety of graphyne known as graphdiyne. The large network is only five to six nanometers (five to six billionths of a meter) in diameter, but previously Ha ley’s lab only created molecules one to two nanometers wide. “1 think that these substructures of carbon are probably the largest car bon-rich structures of that type that have been made,” said Marsden, who has since earned his doctorate and has taken a job at Organic Consultants in Eugene. Marsden said the process of synthesizing the molecule involved more than 20 separate steps, many of which involved us ing a metal called palladium to speed up reactions. When a beam of light is zapped through a soda can or most any oth er solid item, the light will emerge on the other side in a straight line. Graphyne is unique in that, depend ing on the strength of the light, a light beam can pass through it and bend at an angle on its way out. Ul timately this work could be used in optical communications networks, which operate one million times faster than conventional electricity, Haley said. Marsden said that because the carbon structures are about as large as they can possibly get, the next steps will focus on adding different types of molecules to the graphyne molecules to produce different optical properties. Haley also said graphyne could possibly be combined with lithium to improve batteries. The existence and properties of graphyne were first predicted by computational chemists in 1987, Haley said. Another synthetic form of carbon, buckminsterfullerene (com monly known as buckyball), was also predicted before it was created. “The nice thing about organic op tical materials is that with organic chemistry, it is much easier to change or tune properties that you desire for a molecule,” Haley said. The difference between organic chemistry and inorganic chemistry is that organic chemistry works only with substances that contain car bon. This is not limiting for organic chemists because, when combined with other elements, carbon is present in every living creature. “The organic chemist’s toolbox has a lot more tools in it than somebody that’s doing inorganic chemistry,” Haley said. The research was funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation. Contact the business, science and technology reporter at esylwester@dailyemerald. com GOT A STORY IDEA? give us a call o-^ at 346-55111