PHYS SEMINAR

Speaker: Ahmed Maarouf (Egypt Nanotechnology Center)

Date/Time: September 17, 2014 Wednesday at 13:40

Place: Sabancı University, SUNUM Seminar Room

For about a decade, graphene has been the focus of extensive theoretical and experimental research because of its unique physical and chemical properties, including high mobility and mechanical strength, which make it a potential candidate for applications across science and technology, such as nanoelectronics, RF amplifiers, chemical separation, and supports for catalysis. Despite the success of graphene in many domains, the material's zero band-gap property and its relative chemical inertness have limitations for applications which require a fraction of an eV bandgap and/or a stable doping mechanism, such as computer logic switches and various chemical applications. These problems may be solved by graphene nanomeshes (GNM’s), which are graphene-based structures made by forming a lattice of pores in graphene. The pore perimeter of GNM’s contains chemical binding sites which can be used to tune the GNM properties. Given appropriate chemical modifications at these sites, GNM's become key materials for use in nanoelectronics, nanocatalysis, and chemical separations. In my talk, I will demonstrate the feasibility of doping GNM’s using a novel chemically-motivated approach, which we have shown to be stable, with a high degree of control over concentration for both n and p type doping. This approach works because local charge polarization occurs at the pore perimeter due to an electronegativity mismatch between the passivating moiety and the pore carbon to which it is chemically bonded, thus forming an alluring trap for ions. I will also discuss some of the potential applications for GNM's in catalysis and in sensing. 

Contact: İnanç Adagideli, adagideli@sabanciuniv.edu