Bulk synthesis of hexagonal boron nitride nanotubes

A new synthesis technique developed by a team including longtime ISN-affiliated MIT professor Brian Wardle may lead to the practical bulk fabrication of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) nanotubes. Also known as “white graphene,” hBN graphene can withstand higher temperatures than its carbon-based namesake, is electrically insulating rather than conducting, and is optically transparent, making it potentially useful in heat-resistant composites, high-strength windows, sensing platforms, and electronic devices.
A black field of carbon burns away to reveal a white MIT logo.

MIT engineers fabricate a forest of “white graphene” nanotubes (shown here patterned as MIT) by burning away a scaffold of black carbon. Image: Courtesy of the researchers