--- description: The transistors are made out of silicene, a material made up of silicon atoms title: There Are Now Transistors Just One Atom Thick image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltac677cf15e3e8d94/69877dcacd1bba753a6f510c/97640207.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Tech](/tag/time-section-tech/) ## Tech Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Scientists Have Made Computer-Chip Transistors Just One Atom Thick by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 5, 2015 9:02 AM CUT  Computer chip Computer chipGetty Images by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 5, 2015 9:02 AM CUT In a [breakthrough](http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150203160100.htm "undefined") that could potentially revolutionize the technology industry, scientists have constructed transistors made out of a silicon-based material with the thickness of a single atom. The transistors, created by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin’s Cockrell School of Engineering and unveiled in the journal _Nature Nanotechnology_, hold the possibility for faster, more efficient computer chips. The material, silicene, is made up of silicon atoms but has proved difficult to work with in the past due to its volatility when exposed to air. But Deji Akinwande, an assistant professor at the school, teamed up with researchers in Italy to create a layer of silicene between a block of silver and a sheet of aluminum, which they then peeled and scraped to create the silicene strip. “The major breakthrough here is the efficient low-temperature manufacturing and fabrication of silicene devices for the first time,” Akinwande said. \[[_Science Daily_](http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150203160100.htm "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3696620/computer-chip-transistors-one-atom-thick/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3696620/computer-chip-transistors-one-atom-thick/"},"headline":"Scientists Have Made Computer-Chip Transistors Just One Atom Thick","datePublished":"2015-02-05T09:02:06.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:04:21.056Z","description":"This could change everything","url":"https://time.com/3696620/computer-chip-transistors-one-atom-thick/","keywords":["Tech","Innovation"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltac677cf15e3e8d94/69877dcacd1bba753a6f510c/97640207.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rishi Iyengar","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/rishi-iyengar/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltac677cf15e3e8d94/69877dcacd1bba753a6f510c/97640207.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"97640207","caption":"97640207","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-tech/","name":"Tech"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3696620/computer-chip-transistors-one-atom-thick/","name":"Scientists Have Made Computer-Chip Transistors Just One Atom Thick"}}]}] ```