New method to grow germanium crystals may usher era of flexible
electronics  Washington, Sept. 7 : Researchers have developed a
new method to grow germanium crystals at low temperatures, which
could lead to next-generation large-scale integrated circuits
and future flexible electronics  The new approach does not
require high temperatures or other crystals to act as seeds to
grow the germanium crystal and the researchers said that the new
method can be used to produce germanium films with a very large
area, allowing for more potential applications.  Taizoh Sadoh of
Kyushu University said that their method will open new ways to
create advanced flexible electronics.   However, for use in
flexible electronics, the germanium would have to be grown on
malleable materials, which tend to soften at temperatures above
300 degree Celsius. The challenge, said Sadoh, is to grow
germanium at lower temperatures.  Using gold as a catalyst,
Sadoh and his colleagues were able to grow germanium crystals at
a temperature of abou