tech
January 25, 2026
Did Edison accidentally make graphene in 1879?
Rice University chemists replicated Thomas Edison’s seminal experiment and found a surprising byproduct.
TL;DR
- Graphene, the thinnest known material, has numerous promising real-world applications.
- A new paper suggests Thomas Edison may have created graphene as a byproduct of his 19th-century incandescent bulb experiments.
- Researchers recreated Edison's experiment using artisan bamboo-filament bulbs and rapid heating, observing the formation of turbostratic graphene.
- The inventor lacked the technology to detect graphene at the time.
- The study suggests revisiting other early technologies for potentially undiscovered materials or reactions.