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Fullerene growth from encapsulated graphene flakes
Wan Neng1, Lei Shuang-ying, Xu Jun
1SEU-FEI Nano Pico center, Key Laboratory of MEMS of Ministry of Education, School of Electronics Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, P. R. China. slt@seu.edu.cn hqa@seu.edu.cn.
Nanoscale
|August 16, 2014
Summary
Directly observing fullerene formation within graphene ridges using aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy (AC-TEM) revealed an atom-by-atom growth mechanism. This process, supported by computational modeling, highlights graphene
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Physical Chemistry
Background:
- Fullerene synthesis is crucial for nanomaterials.
- Understanding fullerene formation mechanisms is challenging.
- Graphene's unique properties offer potential for controlled synthesis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To directly observe fullerene formation within a graphene ridge.
- To elucidate the atom-by-atom mechanism of fullerene growth.
- To investigate the role of graphene structures in fullerene synthesis.
Main Methods:
- In situ aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy (AC-TEM) for direct observation.
- First principle calculations to model energy changes during carbon atom addition.
- Utilizing ridged graphene structures as nanoscale containers.
Main Results:
- Direct in situ observation of fullerene formation encapsulated within a graphene ridge.
- Proposed and supported an atom-by-atom growth mechanism for fullerenes.
- Demonstrated that ridged graphene acts as a container, enhancing fullerene growth probability.
Conclusions:
- The study provides unprecedented direct visualization of fullerene formation.
- The atom-by-atom mechanism is supported by both experimental and computational data.
- Graphene ridges serve as effective nanoscale environments for controlled fullerene synthesis.
