Electronic Confinement and Coherence in Patterned Epitaxial Graphene

TLDR

The study envisions all‑graphene, electronically coherent devices and architectures. Ultrathin epitaxial graphite was grown on single‑crystal silicon carbide via vacuum graphitization and patterned with standard nanolithography. Transport measurements show Dirac‑like carriers confined to the single graphene layer at the SiC interface, with patterned structures exhibiting quantum confinement, phase coherence lengths over 1 µm at 4 K, and mobilities exceeding 2.5 m² V⁻¹ s⁻¹.

Abstract

Ultrathin epitaxial graphite was grown on single-crystal silicon carbide by vacuum graphitization. The material can be patterned using standard nanolithography methods. The transport properties, which are closely related to those of carbon nanotubes, are dominated by the single epitaxial graphene layer at the silicon carbide interface and reveal the Dirac nature of the charge carriers. Patterned structures show quantum confinement of electrons and phase coherence lengths beyond 1 micrometer at 4 kelvin, with mobilities exceeding 2.5 square meters per volt-second. All-graphene electronically coherent devices and device architectures are envisaged.