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Development of a 3D Graphene Electrode Dielectrophoretic Device
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Influence of Humidity on Contact Resistance in Graphene Devices.
Arne Quellmalz, Anderson D Smith1, Karim Elgammal
1Department of Microtechnology and Nanoscience , Chalmers University of Technology , Gothenburg 41296 , Sweden.
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
|November 3, 2018
Summary
Humidity does not significantly impact the electrical contact resistance of graphene-gold interfaces. This finding supports bottom-contacting graphene for reliable device integration without hermetic sealing.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Electrical Engineering
- Condensed Matter Physics
Background:
- Electrical contact resistance at metal-graphene interfaces impedes graphene device performance.
- Environmental factors like humidity can affect device reliability, especially for unpackaged graphene applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the influence of humidity on the electrical contact resistance of bottom-contacted chemical-vapor-deposited (CVD) graphene-gold interfaces.
- To compare the humidity effects on contact resistance versus graphene sheet resistance.
Main Methods:
- Experimental characterization using transmission line model (TLM) test structures to extract contact resistance.
- Density functional theory (DFT) simulations to model the electronic interactions at the metal-graphene interface and graphene surface.
Main Results:
- Contact resistance between graphene and gold showed no significant change with varying relative humidity (RH).
- Graphene's sheet resistance exhibited measurable humidity sensitivity, contrasting with the contact resistance behavior.
- DFT simulations indicated that water molecules primarily affect graphene's electronic structure, not the gold-graphene interface charge density.
Conclusions:
- Bottom-contacted graphene-gold interfaces are robust against humidity-induced changes in contact resistance.
- This stability makes bottom-contacting a viable strategy for integrating graphene devices into conventional electronics.
- Graphene devices utilizing bottom-contacting architectures are less susceptible to performance degradation from environmental humidity.
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