Graphene condom: Scientists awarded Â£62,000 grant to turn wonder material graphene into contraceptive Graphene is the world's thinnest, strongest and most conductive material Challenge is to develop new technology that can make the condom more desirable to use, which could lead to an increase in its use Scientists hope graphene can be tailored to enhance sensation during intercourse while using a condom It is the thinnest, but also one of the strongest, materials known to man. So it's perhaps unsurprising that wonder matter graphene could be used for condoms. Scientists have been awarded a Â£62,000 grant to turn the carbon material into contraceptives, with a view to making condoms more popular. Graphene consists of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb or chicken wire structure A research team from The University of Manchester has received a Grand Challenges Explorations grant of Â£62,123 from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop new composite nano-materials for next-generation condoms. The challenge is to develop new technology that can make the condom more desirable to use, which could lead to an increase in its use. Composite materials are composed of a mixture of two materials, in this case graphene mixed with an elastic polymer such as latex used in traditional condoms. Graphene is the world's thinnest, strongest and most conductive material, and promises a vast range of diverse applications from smartphones and ultrafast broadband to computer chips. The challenge is to develop new technology that can make the condom more desirable for use It is a two dimensional material consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb or chicken wire structure. Graphene is a two dimensional material consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb or chicken wire structure. It is the thinnest material known and yet is also one of the strongest. It conducts electricity as efficiently as copper and outperforms all other materials as a conductor of heat. Graphene is almost completely transparent, yet so dense that even the smallest atom helium cannot pass through it. If layers of graphene are stacked on top of one another they form graphite, which is found in every pencil lead. In fact anyone who has drawn a line with a pencil has probably made some graphene. University of Manchester scientists Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov, who began experimenting with the substance in 2002, were awarded the 2010 Nobel prize in physics for this work. It was first isolated by Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov at The University of Manchester in 2004 and has since earned the two scientists the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2010. The research will be carried out under the leadership of Dr Aravind Vijayaraghavan at the newly established National Graphene Institute at Manchester. Dr Vijayaraghavan said: 'This composite material will be tailored to enhance the natural sensation during intercourse while using a condom, which should encourage and promote condom use. This will be achieved by combining the strength of graphene with the elasticity of latex to produce a new material which can be thinner, stronger, more stretchy, safer and, perhaps most importantly, more pleasurable. He continued: 'Since its isolation in 2004, people have wondered when graphene will be used in our daily life. Currently, people imagine using graphene in mobile-phone screens, food packaging and chemical sensors. If this project is successful, we might have a use for graphene which will literally touch our everyday life in the most intimate way.