Quasi-free-standing epitaxial graphene on SiC (0001) by fluorine intercalation from a molecular source

Swee Liang Wong; Han Huang; Yuzhan Wang; Liang Cao; Dongchen Qi; Iman Santoso; Wei Chen; Andrew Thye Shen Wee

doi:10.1021/nn202910t

Quasi-free-standing epitaxial graphene on SiC (0001) by fluorine intercalation from a molecular source

ACS Nano. 2011 Sep 27;5(9):7662-8. doi: 10.1021/nn202910t. Epub 2011 Aug 31.

Authors

Swee Liang Wong¹, Han Huang, Yuzhan Wang, Liang Cao, Dongchen Qi, Iman Santoso, Wei Chen, Andrew Thye Shen Wee

Affiliation

¹ NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering, National University of Singapore, 28 Medical Drive S117456, Singapore.

PMID: 21870857
DOI: 10.1021/nn202910t

Abstract

We demonstrated a novel method to obtain charge neutral quasi-free-standing graphene on SiC (0001) from the buffer layer using fluorine from a molecular source, fluorinated fullerene (C(60)F(48)). The intercalated product is stable under ambient conditions and resistant to elevated temperatures of up to 1200 °C. Scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy measurements are performed for the first time on such quasi-free-standing graphene to elucidate changes in the electronic and structural properties of both the graphene and interfacial layer. Novel structures due to a highly localized perturbation caused by the presence of adsorbed fluorine were produced in the intercalation process and investigated. Photoemission spectroscopy is used to confirm these electronic and structural changes.