Graphene Nanoribbon Grids of Sub-10 nm Widths with High Electrical Connectivity

Quasi-one-dimensional (1D) graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) have finite band gaps and active edge states and therefore can be useful for advanced chemical and electronic devices. Here, we present the formation of GNR grids via seed-assisted chemical vapor deposition on Ge(100) substrates. Nucleation seeds, provided by unzipped C-60, initiated growth of the GNRs. The GNRs grew toward two orthogonal directions in an anisotropic manner, templated by the single crystalline substrate, thereby forming grids that had lateral stitching over centimeter scales. The spatially uniform grid can be transferred and patterned for batch fabrication of devices. The GNR grids showed percolative conduction with a high electrical sheet conductance of similar to 2 mu S.sq and field-effect mobility of similar to 5 cm(2) /(V.s) in the macroscopic channels, which confirm excellent lateral stitching between domains. From transconductance measurements, the intrinsic band gap of GNRs with sub-10 nm widths was estimated as similar to 80 meV, similar to theoretical expectation. Our method presents a scalable way to fabricate atomically thin elements with 1D characteristics for integration with various nanodevices.

Automated summary

This study demonstrates the formation of quasi-one-dimensional graphene nanoribbon grids via seed-assisted chemical vapor deposition on Ge(100) substrates. The resulting GNR grids exhibit excellent lateral stitching and high electrical performance, showing potential for integration with various nanodevices.