All-Dry Hydrophobic Functionalization of Paper Surfaces for Efficient Transfer of CVD Graphene

In this study, the successful transfer of chemical vapor deposition (CVD)-grown graphene on an ordinary printing paper surface is demonstrated. Pristine paper is not a suitable substrate for graphene transfer because of its fragile and hydrophilic nature against the chemicals used during the transfer process. Two different fluoroalkyl polymers, namely poly(hexafluorobutyl acrylate) (PHFBA) and poly(perfluorodecyl acrylate) (PPFDA) are coated on paper surfaces by an initiated CVD (iCVD) technique to make the paper surfaces hydrophobic. Hydrophobicity is found to be an important factor in order for the graphene to be transferred onto the paper substrate. Although surfaces coated with PPFDA possess better hydrophobicity owing to their longer perfluoroalkyl group and higher roughness, the graphene transfer is found to be more successful on a PHFBA-coated surface. A thin film of PHFBA on the paper surface acts as a prime layer for effective and defect-free transfer of graphene and makes the paper surface ideal and robust during the graphene transfer process. The as-transferred graphene layer on the PHFBA-coated paper surface shows high conductivity values, even after repeated folding and flattening cycles.