Hexagonal Boron Nitride Monolayers as Protective Barriers for Graphene during Thermal Annealing

ACS Applied Nano Materials, vol. 9, pp. 4863–4870

Abstract

In this study, we investigate the behavior of CVD-grown monolayer hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) as a protective barrier on top of CVD-grown monolayer graphene during the removal of poly-(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) residues by thermal annealing in air. We use a combination of Raman spectroscopy, optical microscopy, and atomic force microscopy to measure the damage of graphene and the efficacy of air annealing as a cleaning method. Our experimental findings demonstrate the effectiveness of h-BN as a protective barrier against graphene damage at temperatures up to 500 °C compared with bare graphene.

Authors 4

1. Vladimir Calvi Aachen

   Leiden University

   Affiliation as printed

   Applied Nanolayers B.V., Feldmanweg 17, 2628CT Delft, ZH, Netherlands

   Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 55, 2333 CC Leiden, Netherlands

2. Dominique Wehenkel
   Affiliation as printed

   Applied Nanolayers B.V., Feldmanweg 17, 2628CT Delft, ZH, Netherlands

3. Michele Buscema
   Affiliation as printed

   Applied Nanolayers B.V., Feldmanweg 17, 2628CT Delft, ZH, Netherlands

4. Irene M. N. Groot Aachen

   Leiden University

   Affiliation as printed

   Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 55, 2333 CC Leiden, Netherlands