Role of residual polymer on chemical vapor grown graphene by Raman spectroscopy

Although various applications extensively utilize polymer-assisted graphene transfer step, the role of residual polymer on graphene was not well-understood. Here, we report the effect of poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) on chemical vapor deposition-grown hexagonal graphene via Raman spectroscopy. Analysis of bare-, PMMA-covered supported, and PMMA-covered suspended graphene exhibits that their G and 2D band positions are progressively downshifted in that order. Mapping of spatial G and 2D band shifts into doping and strain contributions shows that PMMA residue exerts moderate 0.15% tensile strain on graphene/substrate, as compared to that of bare graphene. During this tensile strain, residual PMMA-covered graphene maintains its doping level as much as bare graphene does. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.