Liquid metal intercalation of epitaxial graphene: large-area gallenene layer fabrication through gallium self-propagation at ambient conditions

Abstract

We demonstrate the fabrication of an ultra thin gallium film, also known as gallenene, beneath epitaxial graphene on 6H-SiC under ambient conditions triggered by liquid gallium intercalation. Gallenene has been fabricated using the liquid metal intercalation, achieving lateral intercalation and diffusion of Ga atoms at room temperature on square centimeter areas limited only by the graphene samples' size. The stepwise self-propagation of the gallenene film below the epitaxial graphene surface on the macroscopic scale was observed by optical microscopy shortly after the initial processing without further physical or chemical treatment. Directional Ga diffusion of gallenene occurs on SiC terraces since the terrace steps form an energetic barrier (Ehrlich-Schwoebel barrier),retarding the gallenene propagation. The subsequent conversion of the epitaxial graphene into quasi free-standing bilayer graphene (QFBLG) and the graphene-gallenene heterostack interactions have been analyzed by XPS and Raman measurements. The results reveal a novel approach for controlled fabrication of wafer-scale gallenene as well as for two-dimensional heterostructures and stacks based on the interaction between liquid metal and epitaxial graphene. Please note, this work was also titled as Graphene meets gallenene -- A straightforward approach to developing large-area heterostacks by gallium self-propagation https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333451130_Graphene_meets_gallenene_-_A_straightforward_approach_to_developing_large-area_heterostacks_by_gallium_self-propagation

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Cited by in corpus (5)

• Novel structures of Gallenene intercalated in epitaxial Graphene
• Mesoscopic scale study of lateral dynamics of Sn-intercalation of the buffer layer on SiC
• Quasiperiodic gallium adlayer on i-Al-Pd-Mn
• Charge to spin conversion in atomically thin bismuth
• Nonlinear optical response and spontaneous polarization in layer-stacked gallenene using second harmonic generation