Production and processing of graphene and 2 d crystals

ISSN:1369 7021 © Elsevier Ltd 2012 DECEMBER 2012 | VOLUME 15 | NUMBER 12 Graphene has high mobility and optical transparency, in addition to flexibility, high mechanical strength and environmental stability. These properties have already had a huge impact on fundamental science1-3, and are making graphene and graphene-based materials a promising platform for electronics, composites, sensors, spintronics, photonics and optoelectronics1,4,5. A variety of possible applications ranging from solar cells6 and light-emitting devices7,8 to touch screens9, photodetectors10-13, ultrafast lasers14,15, membranes16,17, spin valves18,19, high frequency electronics20, etc. are being explored. The present ”second phase” of graphene research, after the award of the Nobel Prize to Geim and Novoselov, besides deepening the understanding of the fundamental aspects of this material, should target applications and manufacturing processes, and broaden research to other twodimensional (2d) materials and hybrid systems. Graphene development could impact products in multiple industries, from flexible, wearable and transparent electronics, to high performance computing and spintronics. The integration of these new materials could bring a new dimension to future technologies, where faster, thinner, stronger, flexible, and broadband devices are needed21. However, large-scale cost-effective production methods are required with a balance between ease of fabrication and materials quality. Here we review the state of the art of graphene preparation, production, placement and handling, and outline how similar approaches could be used for other 2d crystals. The main approaches are summarized in Fig. 1. This paper is organized as follows. in section I we outline all the graphene production techniques, section II is dedicated to graphene processing after production, while in section III we discuss the development of inorganic layered compounds and hybrid structures. Table 1 gives a list of acronyms and notation used throughout the paper.