Researchers at the University of Manchester have produced tiny liquid crystal devices with electrodes made from graphene.

The breakthrough paves the way for computer and TV displays based on the next-generation electrical conductor technology.

Graphene was discovered at the University of Manchester in 2004 by Professor Andre Geim FRS and Royal Society research fellow Dr Kostya Novoselov. It is a one-atom-thick gauze of carbon atoms which resembles chicken wire.

The research team has demonstrated that highly transparent and highly conductive ultra-thin films can be produced cheaply by "dissolving" chunks of graphite into graphene and spraying the suspension onto glass surfaces.

The resulting graphene-based films can be used in LCDs and, to prove the concept, the research team has demonstrated the first liquid crystal devices with graphene electrodes.

Writing in the American Chemical Society's Nano Letters, Dr Novoselov explained that graphene's high transparency and low resistivity make it ideal for electrodes in liquid crystal devices.

"Graphene is only one atom thick, optically transparent, chemically inert and an excellent conductor," he said.

"These properties seem to make this material an excellent candidate for applications in various electro-optical devices that require conducting, but transparent, thin films.

"We believe that graphene should improve the durability and simplify the technology of potential electronic devices that interact with light."

Professor Geim warned that the underlying technology for today's displays uses thin metal-oxide films based on indium which is becoming increasingly expensive and rare.

"Forget about oil. Our civilisation will first run out of indium. Scientists have an urgent task on their hands to find new types of conductive transparent films," he said.