FABRICATION AND MEASUREMENT OF GRAPHENE ELECTROCHEMICAL MICROELECTRODES

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Abstract

The electrochemical properties of graphene were investigated using a novel and clean method to fabricate device structures with mechanically exfoliated graphene samples. Graphene is known as being particularly sensitive to both contaminating fabrication methods and the substrate it is placed on, with these effects being detrimental to accurate research into the fundamental properties and sensing applications of graphene. This thesis presents micron scale graphene electrodes that have not been subject to polymer contamination or micro-lithography methods. The effect of utilising atomically flat hexagonal boron nitride as a substrate material was investigated, believed to be the first example of this for graphene electrochemical measurements.Cyclic voltammetry demonstrated the expected steady-state behaviour for microelectrodes in the hemispherical diffusion regime. The reduction of IrCl62- in weak KCl electrolytes was studied to investigate the electron transfer characteristics of the graphene devices and the reproducibility of the measurements. Average values of the standard rate constant, k0 and the transfer coefficient, α were found to be 3.04 ± 0.78 ×10-3 cms-1 and 0.272 ± 0.024 respectively. These values differ significantly from previous similar studies, with the effect of reduced charge doping from the substrate and the potential dependence of the density of electronic states thought to account for the differences. Despite the clean fabrication methods, a relatively large variation between separate devices was found, highlighting an inherent variation in the properties of graphene samples.

Keyword(s)

Boron nitride; Electrochemistry; Graphene; Ultramicroelectrode

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