Abstract
Nanoholes, etched under an electron beam at room temperature in single-layer graphene sheets as a result of their interaction with metal impurities, are shown to heal spontaneously by filling up with either nonhexagon, graphene-like, or perfect hexagon 2D structures. Scanning transmission electron microscopy was employed to capture the healing process and study atom-by-atom the regrown structure. A combination of these nanoscale etching and reknitting processes could lead to new graphene tailoring approaches.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 3936-3940 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | Nano Letters |
| Volume | 12 |
| Issue number | 8 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 8 Aug 2012 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- 2D materials
- Graphene
- etching
- scanning transmission electron microscopy
- self-healing