Synthesis of nitrogen-doped graphene films for lithium battery application

We demonstrate a controlled growth of nitrogen-doped graphene layers by liquid precursor based chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique. Nitrogen-doped graphene was grown directly on Cu current collectors and studied for its reversible Li-ion intercalation properties. Reversible discharge capacity of N-doped graphene is almost double compared to pristine graphene due to the large number of surface defects induced due to N-doping. All the graphene films were characterized by Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray photoemission spectroscopy. Direct growth of active electrode material on current collector substrates makes this a feasible and efficient process for integration into current battery manufacture technology.