The Fine Structure Constant and Graphene

Looking at recent results in an historical perspective can motivate more thorough understandings. In this paper we recapitulate the origin of the fine structure constant, from Bohr's atom to Sommerfeld, to Dirac. That constant is found again in the framework of condensed matter physics, in a material, graphene, which is much more complex than the hydrogen atom. This is an example of how methods of high energy physics are applied in materials science and nanotechnologies.