Electrical pulse fabrication of graphene nanopores in electrolyte solution

Abstract

Nanopores in graphene membranes can potentially offer unprecedented spatial resolution for single molecule sensing, but their fabrication has thus far been difficult, poorly scalable, and prone to contamination. We demonstrate an <i>in-situ</i> fabrication method that nucleates and controllably enlarges nanopores in electrolyte solution by applying ultra-short, high-voltage pulses across the graphene membrane. This method can be used to rapidly produce graphene nanopores with subnanometer size accuracy in an apparatus free of nanoscale beams or tips.