Very low-temperature growth of few-layer graphene by Ni-induced crystallization of amorphous carbon in vacuum

Graphene of thickness a few atomic layers has been grown in Ni/a-C bilayers at temperatures as low as 300 °C by Ni-induced crystallization of the amorphous carbon (a-C) in high vacuum. The mechanism of such very low-temperature growth of graphene has been investigated by a combinatorial experimental...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Carbon (New York) 2020-04, Vol.159, p.37-44
Main Authors: Chen, Yuanyuan, Wang, Jiangyong, Schützendübe, Peter, Wang, Zumin, Mittemeijer, Eric J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bilayers
Carbon
Combinatorial analysis
Crystallization
Diffusion layers
Diffusion rate
Electron microscopy
Energy storage
Graphene
High vacuum
Low temperature
Photoelectrons
Scanning electron microscopy
Surface diffusion
Temperature effects
Thickness
X ray photoelectron spectroscopy
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Summary:Graphene of thickness a few atomic layers has been grown in Ni/a-C bilayers at temperatures as low as 300 °C by Ni-induced crystallization of the amorphous carbon (a-C) in high vacuum. The mechanism of such very low-temperature growth of graphene has been investigated by a combinatorial experimental approach including x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Auger electron spectroscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The growth of this few atomic layer thickness graphene has been found to be mediated by a coupled grain-boundary (GB) diffusion/surface diffusion mechanism. GBs in the top Ni sublayer provide fast diffusion paths for C atoms through the Ni layer, as a result of which graphene layers form above the Ni. The revealed low-temperature growth mechanism of graphene induced by contact with a metal can be applicable in advancing research fields as metal-matrix graphene composites and advanced energy storage devices. [Display omitted]
ISSN:0008-6223
1873-3891
DOI:10.1016/j.carbon.2019.12.017