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Updated: Jun 19, 2026

Scalable Syntheses of Graphene Oxide and Reduced Graphene Oxide using Cascade Design Oxidation and Highly Basic Reduction Reactions
Published on: July 3, 2025
Structural and electronic properties of oxidized graphene
Jia-An Yan1, Lede Xian, M Y Chou
1School of Physics, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0430, USA.
Oxidation of graphene, using epoxide and hydroxyl groups, can tune its electronic band gap. This study identifies favorable configurations for controlling graphene
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Computational Chemistry
Background:
- Graphene exhibits unique electronic properties.
- Controlling graphene's band gap is crucial for electronic applications.
- Oxidation is a common method for functionalizing graphene.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of oxidation on graphene's structural and electronic properties.
- To identify energetically favorable oxidation configurations.
- To understand how oxidation influences graphene's band gap.
Main Methods:
- First-principles calculations were employed.
- Systematic investigation of atomic configurations.
- Analysis of electronic band structure.
Main Results:
- Favorable configurations involve adjacent epoxide and hydroxyl groups.
- Various arrangements yield tunable band gaps within a few eV.
- Oxidation level and functional group ratio affect the band gap.
Conclusions:
- Oxidation offers a pathway to engineer graphene's band gap.
- Controlling functional group density and arrangement is key.
- Potential for creating tunable electronic properties in graphene.
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