Post-cutting surface evaluation of the Cu foil substrate grown with single-layer graphene

Abstract

A large-sized graphene purchased for research purposes can be cost effective as its usage is not limited to one experimental study. It can be cut into many smaller pieces for other experimental studies. In this study, Cu foil substrate grown with single-layer graphene via chemical vapor deposition (CVD) with a size of 2” x 2” was cut into small pieces with a size of 10 × 10 mm2 using a pair of high-quality stainless-steel scissors. The surface quality of the cut substrate was evaluated using three microscopes with different types of illumination sources. In the post-cut substrate, a wrinkle and roughness at the edge of the substrate surface were observed, which can be attributed to the uneven surface contact and force distribution during the handling and cutting process using a tweezer and a pair of scissors. However, the wrinkle in the substrate is not the main reason for the degraded quality of graphene grown on the substrate. Meanwhile, the roughness at the edge area of the cut substrate may be reduced by controlling the speed and angle of the cutting forces. The information obtained from this preliminary study of sample preparation is important for future work in the synthesis of graphene nanocomposites for its application in nanofluids.