Using mushroom skin as a base for computer chips and batteries could be a sustainable alternative that reduces the environmental impact of the technology.
As part of the process of manufacturing computer chips, their electronic circuits, made of conducting metals, need to sit in an insulating and cooling base called a substrate. This is often fabricated with non-recyclable plastic polymers, which are thrown away at the end of a chip's life, contributing to the 50 million tonnes of electronic waste that is produced each year.
A team of researchers at Johannes Kepler University in Linz, Austria, has come up with a biodegradable alternative to these polymers, made from the skin of a certain type of mushroom.
Chip made from mushroom skin / Credit: Soft Matter Physics Division, Johannes Kepler University Linz. Images taken...