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Graphene

Pushing the boundaries

Nature Materials volume 10, pages 415–417 (2011)Cite this article

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Grain boundaries in polycrystalline graphene are an obstacle to electron transport. However, cunning refinements in growth techniques push the limits to obtain super-sized single-crystal domains.

Practical materials are almost always polycrystalline. This is the direct result of nucleation, growth and coalescence of grains resulting in broken periodicity in materials. In three-dimensional structures, the sizes of grains and the boundaries between them strongly influence the physical properties. For example, in metals, grain boundaries impede dislocation motion and hence induce mechanical strengthening, but on the other hand increase electron scattering and decrease electrical conductivity. Recent advances in the growth of two-dimensional (2D) structures, most notably graphene1, give no reasons to believe in exceptions. Several reports2,3 have clearly shown the presence of grain boundaries in graphene layers prepared through the exfoliation of graphite or grown on metal surfaces by the chemical vapour deposition of hydrocarbons. In fact, it is no secret that the best electronic properties of graphene ever demonstrated have come from layers of graphene peeled off from rare natural graphite formed under extreme geological conditions.

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Figure 1: Hexagons beget hexagons.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pulickel M. Ajayan and Boris I. Yakobson are in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Department of Chemistry, Rice University, Houston, Texas 77006, USA,

    Pulickel M. Ajayan & Boris I. Yakobson

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  1. Pulickel M. Ajayan
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  2. Boris I. Yakobson
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Correspondence to Pulickel M. Ajayan or Boris I. Yakobson.

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Ajayan, P., Yakobson, B. Pushing the boundaries. Nature Mater 10, 415–417 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat3027

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