Synthesis of atomic layers of hybridized h-BNC by depositing h-BN on graphene via ion beam sputtering

Abstract

We report the deposition of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) on graphene by ion beam sputtering deposition. Both graphene domains and films synthesized by chemical vapor deposition were used as substrates. In the case of graphene domains, it was found that the h-BN domains were preferentially grown on the baked Cu surface instead of graphene due to the highly catalytic activity of Cu. On the other hand, the higher ejection energy of sputtered particles leads to the mixing of boron/nitrogen atoms and carbon atoms. Consequently, the h-BNC films consisting of the hybrid atomic layers of h-BN and graphene domains were formed when the graphene films were used as substrates. This work provides a promising and accessible route for the synthesis of hybridized h-BNC material.

A hybrid MBE-based growth method for large-area synthesis of stacked hexagonal boron nitride/graphene heterostructures

“…broad D and G peaks and high D peak intensity) reported by these studies and more recently by Meng et al . 52 , also for h-BNC alloy films, is different from what is observed in the present case. This and the X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS) and grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GID) results shown next, indicates that alloying does not take place in the heterostructure films studied here.…”

“…The weak component observed at ~288.9 eV can be attributed to a slight CO contamination in the heterostructure films, and has also been observed for pure h-BN films 66 67 . The formation of C−B bonds, which should result in components appearing at a lower binding energy in the C1s region (283–283.5 eV), and in the 187–188 eV range for the B1s level 50 52 62 , were not detected. This suggests that a weak N doping of the graphene film during the initial stages of the h-BN growth is indeed the main reason for the splitting of the G peak observed by UV Raman spectroscopy.…”

Transfer‐Free Synthesis of Lateral Graphene–Hexagonal Boron Nitride Heterostructures from Chemically Converted Epitaxial Graphene

“…Additional components at 286.2 and 284.3 eV indicate the presence of CN and CB bonds, respectively . The presence of segregated h‐BN domains is confirmed by the peaks at 398.1 eV in the N 1s core level and 190.6 eV in the B 1s core level, and CN and CB peaks appear at 398.7 and 190.3 eV in their respective core levels . A small amount of residual B 2 O 3 can be observed from the peak at 191.4 eV in the B 1s spectrum .…”

“…Peaks at 283.8, 284.6, 284.8, and 285.5 eV are attributed to the SiC substrate, sp 2 CC bonds of graphene, and the two buffer layer components, respectively . Additional components at 286.2 and 284.3 eV indicate the presence of CN and CB bonds, respectively . The presence of segregated h‐BN domains is confirmed by the peaks at 398.1 eV in the N 1s core level and 190.6 eV in the B 1s core level, and CN and CB peaks appear at 398.7 and 190.3 eV in their respective core levels .…”

Structure, Properties and Applications of Two‐Dimensional Hexagonal Boron Nitride

“…Wang et al [253,254] utilized ion beam sputtering deposition to grow large size h-BN domains on Ni foil to control the number of layers, with Meng et al synthesizing atomic layers of hybridized h-BNC using this same technique. [255] These reports suggest that sputtering deposition is also a promising technique to control h-BN film thickness on various substrates.…”