Paraffin wax assisted chemical vapor deposited graphene transfer method

Abstract

The synthesis of large-area graphene obtained by Chemical Vapor Deposition is one of the most promising techniques to synthetized graphene films, due to the cost-effective ratio and high-quality films. Nevertheless, to obtain a functional material, a transfer to a new substrate is required. The Poly-methyl methacrylate-assisted transfer method is widely used but still presents critical issues that need to be solved for a clean transfer. By using wax, which has a low reactivity and interesting thermal properties, the developed method allowed several improvements, including, the wrinkle reduction and less polymer contamination, that was confirmed by Atomic Force Microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Likewise, an easier and more suitable way to incorporate the wax layer is described, as well as the selection process of the most suitable wax and graphene transfer conditions, finding that a uniform 3 μm thick layer of a saturated aliphatic wax structure performs better results for this application.