Towards wafer-size graphene layers by atmospheric pressure graphitization of silicon carbide
Summary (1 min read)
Introduction
- Graphene, a single monolayer of graphite, has recently attracted considerable interest due to its novel magneto transport properties1-3, high carrier mobility, and ballistic transport up to room temperature4.
- The preparation of single layer graphene by the thermal decomposition of SiC is envisaged as a viable route for the synthesis of uniform, wafer-size graphene layers for technological applications, but the large scale structural quality is presently limited by the lack of continuity and uniformity of the grown film15,16.
- Step bunching is manifested by the formation of macro-terraces with a width that increases from about 0.5 µm on the original surface (Fig. 1(a)) to about 3 µm.
- The domain size of monolayer graphene is significantly larger than that of the vacuum annealed samples as a comparison between figs.
- Therefore, while their epitaxial growth process results in a dramatic improvement in surface morphology all other important properties such as crystalline order, electronic structure, and charge carrier density remain unaltered as compared to vacuum grown layers.
Methods
- Graphene layers were synthesized on commercial, nominally on-axis oriented wafers of 6H-SiC(0001) purchased from SiCrystal AG.
- A wide range of annealing temperatures from 1500 to 2000° C and reactor gas pressures from 10 mbar to 900 mbar were tested and a detailed account of all observations will be provided elsewhere.
- The crystal structure of the films was monitored by low-energy electron diffraction (LEED).
- The first step defined the graphene film (undesired areas were etched with oxygen plasma).
- A second step defined the contact pads, which consist of thermally evaporated Ti/Au double layer, patterned by a standard lift-off technique.
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Frequently Asked Questions (7)
Q2. What was the process of graphene growth?
Graphene growth was carried out in a vertical cold wall reactor comprised of a doublewalled quartz tube and a graphite susceptor in a moderate flow of argon (5.0).
Q3. What was the first step in the graphene growth?
Electrical measurements in van der Pauw geometry or on Hall bar structures were carried out in a continuous flow cryostat (sample in vacuum), using magnetic fields of ±0.66 T at temperatures between 300 and 25 K.The authors gratefully acknowledge support by the DFG under contract SE 1087/5-1, contract WE45425-1, and within the Cluster of Excellence ‘Engineering of Advanced Materials’ (www.eam.unierlangen.de) at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, and the BMBF under contract 05 ES3XBA/5.
Q4. What was the first step of the graphene etching?
A second step defined the contact pads, which consist of thermally evaporated Ti/Au double layer, patterned by a standard lift-off technique.
Q5. What was the reaction temperature of graphene?
A wide range of annealing temperatures from 1500 to 2000° C and reactor gas pressures from 10 mbar to 900 mbar were tested and a detailed account of all observations will be provided elsewhere.
Q6. What was the work done at Sandia National Laboratories?
A part of the work was performed at Sandia National Laboratories, a multiprogram laboratory operated by Sandia Corporation, a Lockheed Martin company, for the United States Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Division of Materials Science and Engineering, under Contract No. DE-AC04-94AL85000.
Q7. What was the work done at the ALS?
The work performed at the ALS supported by the Director, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC03-76SF00098.