Graphene reinforced silicon composites and their characterizations

Abstract

We successfully prepared Si-graphene composites with silicon as matrix and 0.2 to 0.6 variation of weight percentage of graphene by dry planetary ball mill. The period of rotation of the ball mill was 8 hrs. X-ray diffraction (XRD) of Si-graphene composites exhibits peaks due to both Si and graphene. Specific surface area is improved from 95 to 120 m2g−1 by the addition of graphene. Si-graphene (0.4 wt%) composite shows relatively high electrical conductivity (5.06 × 10-4 S/m) in comparison to pure silicon (4.1 × 10-4 S/m).