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2-DTech was founded in 2012 as a spin-out from the University, both to capitalise on its scientific lead and to take advantage of an opportunity it saw in the market. Taking the lead in funding the initial operation was UMI 3 , the University's technology commercialisation company and seed investor. In May 2014 a majority stake in the company was acquired by specialist advanced materials company, Versarien, with the University maintaining a significant minority stake. Versarien brings project management and manufacturing expertise to the work the University started in 2-DTech. While many companies were rushing to the market and were filing patents on the applications of graphene, the University was uncertain of the quality of the material being produced. At the same time the University was starting to research the applications of graphene in many different disciplines outside physics, such as life sciences, biomedical sciences, engineering and materials science. This created a demand for graphene which was not only of a high and consistent quality but also was fully characterised so that research into its use in applications could be carried out in a robust fashion and the results fully understood. 2-DTech/Versarien (Graphene) A classic case of 'what Manchester does today, the world does tomorrow' 12 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. UNIVERSITY SPIN-OUT