Wafer level drop casting and AlCl3 doping for highly conductive thin graphene paths

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Marc Stevens - , Fraunhofer Institute for Electronic Nano Systems (Author)
  • Florian Fuchs - , Fraunhofer Institute for Electronic Nano Systems, Chemnitz University of Technology (Author)
  • André Hermannsdorfer - , Robert Bosch GmbH (Author)
  • Fabian Teichert - , Fraunhofer Institute for Electronic Nano Systems, Chemnitz University of Technology (Author)
  • Martin Köhne - , Robert Bosch GmbH (Author)
  • Jörg Schuster - , Fraunhofer Institute for Electronic Nano Systems, Chemnitz University of Technology (Author)
  • Sascha Hermann - , Chemnitz University of Technology, TUD Dresden University of Technology (Author)

Abstract

In this work, we report a stage-controlled wafer level drop casting technique of thin graphene paths from a water based, additive free graphene dispersion. SEM cross sections indicate a strong planar orientation of graphene flake networks. The graphene dispersion was cast onto wafer substrates up to 8 in. in size and annealed at 300 °C, achieving 0.14 × 106 S/m with controllable path thicknesses down to 30 nm. The electrical conductivity can be significantly increased to up to 3.5 × 106 S/m by gas-phase doping using AlCl3. We discuss a doping experiment, resulting in a gradual increase of conductivity between 2 and 30 times, underlined by EDX, Raman spectroscopy and profile measurements. Further, we have modelled the graphene paths as an idealized layered system with many flakes per layer, connected all flakes to form a conductor network, and finally solved this network via nodal analysis. These simulations reproduce the experimentally shown thickness-dependence of the conductivity and provide a deeper understanding of the influence of path thickness and microscopic flake properties. The simulations suggest that the doping process not only enhances the in-plane conductivity of the flakes but also the interlayer coupling, indicating that the dopants predominantly act as surface dopants. The reported results surpass previously shown conductivities for dispersion casting of graphene by over an order of magnitude, offering a sustainable alternative to replace metal based conductors in electronic devices.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number111989
JournalDiamond and related materials
Volume153
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2025
Peer-reviewedYes