Triboelectricity-assisted transfer of graphene for flexible optoelectronic applications

In this work, we developed a novel triboelectricity-assisted polymer-free method for the transfer of large-area chemical vapor deposited graphene films. With the assistance of electrostatic forces from friction-generated charges, graphene sheets were successfully transferred from copper foils to flexible polymer substrates. Characterization results confirmed the presence of high quality graphene with less defects and contaminations, compared to graphene transferred by conventional poly(methyl methacrylate)-mediated processes. In addition, the graphene samples possessed outstanding electrical transport capabilities and mechanical stability, when studied as electron transfer matrixes in graphene/ZnO hybrid flexible photodetectors. Our results showed a broad application potential for this transfer method in future flexible electronics and optoelectronics.