Ultra-thin NaCl films as protective layers for graphene

The ageing of graphene is an important issue for technological applications. Capping layers are a good way of circumventing this problem. In this work, we propose the use of ultra-thin NaCl films as easilyremovable protective layers. We have carried out a detailed characterization of the NaCl/graphe...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Palacio, Irene, Lauwaet, Koen, Vázquez Burgos, Luis, Palomares, F. Javier, González-Herrero, Héctor, Martínez, José I., Aballe, Lucía, Foerster, Michael, García-Hernández, Mar, Martín-Gago, José A.
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2019
Country:España
Institution:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repository:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/191900
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/191900
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Graphene
NaCl
Capping layers
Interfaces
Cu(111)
Ultra-thin films
Description
Summary:The ageing of graphene is an important issue for technological applications. Capping layers are a good way of circumventing this problem. In this work, we propose the use of ultra-thin NaCl films as easilyremovable protective layers. We have carried out a detailed characterization of the NaCl/graphene interface on metal substrates, namely Cu(111) and Ir(111), by means of complementary microscopies, electron diffraction and spectroscopic techniques. Interestingly, we show that NaCl neither interacts in a chemical way with graphene nor intercalates through it. We demonstrate that the NaCl film is stable under ambient conditions, protecting the graphene surface from oxidation. In addition, after removing the protective layer, graphene remains intact.