Synthesis, characterization and electrical properties of silicon-doped graphene films

Theoretical calculations have predicted that silicon doping modifies the electronic structure of graphene; however, it is difficult to synthesize high-quality silicon-doped graphene (SiG), thus the electrical properties of SiG have still remained unexplored. In this study, a monolayer SiG film was synthesized by chemical vapour deposition using triphenylsilane (C18H15Si) as a sole solid source, which provides both carbon and silicon atoms. The silicon doping content is similar to 2.63 at%, and silicon atoms are incorporated into the graphene lattice with pure Si-C bonds. Furthermore, electrical studies reveal that the as-synthesized SiG film shows a typical p-type doping behaviour with a considerably high carrier mobility of about 660 cm(2) V-1 s(-1) at room temperature. In addition, due to the single doping structure of Si-C bonds, the SiG film can be expected to be used as an excellent platform for studying silicon doping effects on the physical and chemical properties of graphene.