nl5b04821_si_003.pdf (3.43 MB)
Metallic Nanoislands on Graphene as Highly Sensitive Transducers of Mechanical, Biological, and Optical Signals
journal contribution
posted on 2016-01-18, 20:27 authored by Aliaksandr V. Zaretski, Samuel E. Root, Alex Savchenko, Elena Molokanova, Adam D. Printz, Liban Jibril, Gaurav Arya, Mark Mercola, Darren J. LipomiThis
article describes an effect based on the wetting transparency of graphene;
the morphology of a metallic film (≤20 nm) when deposited on
graphene by evaporation depends strongly on the identity of the substrate
supporting the graphene. This control permits the formation of a range
of geometries, such as tightly
packed nanospheres, nanocrystals, and island-like formations with
controllable gaps down to 3 nm. These graphene-supported structures
can be transferred to any surface and function as ultrasensitive mechanical
signal transducers with high sensitivity and range (at least 4 orders
of magnitude of strain) for applications in structural health monitoring,
electronic skin, measurement of the contractions of cardiomyocytes,
and substrates for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS, including
on the tips of optical fibers). These composite films can thus be
treated as a platform technology for multimodal sensing. Moreover,
they are low profile, mechanically robust, semitransparent and have
the potential for reproducible manufacturing over large areas.