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11 November 2009
Synthesis of Isotopically-Labeled Graphite Films by Cold-Wall Chemical Vapor Deposition and Electronic Properties of Graphene Obtained from Such Films
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Rodney S. Ruoff1(
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We report the synthesis of isotopically-labeled graphite films on nickel substrates by using cold-wall chemical vapor deposition (CVD). During the synthesis, carbon from 12C- and 13C-methane was deposited on, and dissolved in, a nickel foil at high temperature, and a uniform graphite film was segregated from the nickel surface by cooling the sample to room temperature. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy, micro-Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction prove the presence of a graphite film. Monolayer graphene films obtained from such isotopically-labeled graphite films by mechanical methods have electron mobility values greater than 5000 cm2·V−1·s−1 at low temperatures. Furthermore, such films exhibit the half-integer quantum Hall effect over a wide temperature range from 2 K to 200 K, implying that the graphite grown by this cold-wall CVD approach has a quality as high as highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG). The results from transport measurements indicate that 13C-labeling does not significantly affect the electrical transport properties of graphene.
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Synthesis of Isotopically-Labeled Graphite Films by Cold-Wall Chemical Vapor Deposition and Electronic Properties of Graphene Obtained from Such Films
), Rodney S. Ruoff1(
)
Abstract
We report the synthesis of isotopically-labeled graphite films on nickel substrates by using cold-wall chemical vapor deposition (CVD). During the synthesis, carbon from 12C- and 13C-methane was deposited on, and dissolved in, a nickel foil at high temperature, and a uniform graphite film was segregated from the nickel surface by cooling the sample to room temperature. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy, micro-Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction prove the presence of a graphite film. Monolayer graphene films obtained from such isotopically-labeled graphite films by mechanical methods have electron mobility values greater than 5000 cm2·V−1·s−1 at low temperatures. Furthermore, such films exhibit the half-integer quantum Hall effect over a wide temperature range from 2 K to 200 K, implying that the graphite grown by this cold-wall CVD approach has a quality as high as highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG). The results from transport measurements indicate that 13C-labeling does not significantly affect the electrical transport properties of graphene.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by The University of Texas at Austin and by the Texas Nanotechnology Research Superiority Initiative, Southwest Nanotechnology Institute (TNRSI)/SWAN.
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