Solid-state graphene formation via a nickel carbide intermediate phase [Nickel carbide (Ni3C) as an intermediate phase for graphene formation]

Xiong, W; Zhou, Yunshen; Hou, Wenjia; Guillemet, Thomas; Silvain, Jean-François; Lahaye, Michel; Lebraud, Eric; Xu, Shen; Wang, Xinwei; Cullen, David A; More, Karren Leslie; Lu, Yong Feng

doi:10.1039/C5RA18682J

Solid-state graphene formation via a nickel carbide intermediate phase [Nickel carbide (Ni₃C) as an intermediate phase for graphene formation]

Journal Article · Tue Nov 10 00:00:00 EST 2015 · RSC Advances

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1039/C5RA18682J· OSTI ID:1234316

Xiong, W ^[1]; Zhou, Yunshen ^[2]; Hou, Wenjia ^[2]; Guillemet, Thomas ^[3]; Silvain, Jean-François ^[3]; Lahaye, Michel ^[3]; Lebraud, Eric ^[3]; Xu, Shen ^[4]; Wang, Xinwei ^[4]; Cullen, David A ^[2]; More, Karren Leslie ^[2]; Lu, Yong Feng ^[1]

Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE (United States)
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Chemistry Inst. of Condensed Matter of Bordeaux (France)
Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

Direct formation of graphene with controlled number of graphitic layers on dielectric surfaces is highly desired for practical applications. Despite significant progress achieved in understanding the formation of graphene on metallic surfaces through chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of hydrocarbons, very limited research is available elucidating the graphene formation process via rapid thermal processing (RTP) of solid-state amorphous carbon, through which graphene is formed directly on dielectric surfaces accompanied by autonomous nickel evaporation. It is suggested that a metastable hexagonal nickel carbide (Ni₃C) intermediate phase plays a critical role in transforming amorphous carbon to 2D crystalline graphene and contributing to the autonomous Ni evaporation. Temperature resolved carbon and nickel evolution in the RTP process is investigated using Auger electron spectroscopic (AES) depth profiling and glancing-angle X-ray diffraction (GAXRD). Formation, migration and decomposition of the hexagonal Ni₃C are confirmed to be responsible for the formation of graphene and the evaporation of Ni at 1100 °C. The Ni₃C-assisted graphene formation mechanism expands the understanding of Ni-catalyzed graphene formation, and provides insightful guidance for controlled growth of graphene through the solid-state transformation process.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences (CNMS)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-00OR22725

OSTI ID:: 1234316

Journal Information:: RSC Advances, Journal Name: RSC Advances Vol. 5; ISSN 2046-2069

Publisher:: Royal Society of ChemistryCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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High-Electrical-Conductivity Multilayer Graphene Formed by Layer Exchange with Controlled Thickness and Interlayer Murata, Hiromasa; Nakajima, Yoshiki; Saitoh, Noriyuki Scientific Reports, Vol. 9, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-40547-0	journal	March 2019
Applications of 2D MXenes in energy conversion and storage systems Pang, Jinbo; Mendes, Rafael G.; Bachmatiuk, Alicja Chemical Society Reviews, Vol. 48, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1039/c8cs00324f	journal	January 2019
A light emitter based on practicable and mass-producible polycrystalline graphene patterned directly on silicon substrates from a solid-state carbon source Nakagawa, Kenta; Takahashi, Hidenori; Shimura, Yui RSC Advances, Vol. 9, Issue 65 https://doi.org/10.1039/c9ra07294b	journal	January 2019
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