AVS 58th Annual International Symposium and Exhibition
    Graphene and Related Materials Focus Topic Wednesday Sessions
       Session GR+MN-WeM

Invited Paper GR+MN-WeM1
Graphene Atomic Membranes: From Patchwork Quilts to Atomic Drums

Wednesday, November 2, 2011, 8:00 am, Room 208

Session: Graphene: Mechanical and Thermal Properties, Graphene MEMS and NEMS
Presenter: Paul McEuen, Cornell University
Correspondent: Click to Email
Graphene is the world’s first atomic membrane, a robust, one-atom thick freestanding layer of sp2-bonded carbon. The physical properties of these membranes straddle the border between soft and hard condensed matter. They are strong but highly flexible, with bending stiffness comparable to a lipid bilayer but stretching stiffness similar to diamond. Meter-scale polycrystalline graphene films can now be produced cheaply and easily, opening the door to applications in both science and technology. In this talk we will present new results on the structural and physical properties of this remarkable 2D material, including the first STEM images of graphene grain boundaries and the patchwork-quilt-like structure of graphene grains. We also discuss experiments on atomic drums made with graphene membranes that can be actuated and probed either electrically or optically. Unlike for traditional MEMs and NEMs, we find that stiction and entropy are key parameters in determining the drum’s vibration frequency.