A team of physicists and chemists has produced the first porous graphene ribbons in which specific carbon atoms in the crystal lattice are replaced with nitrogen atoms. These ribbons have semiconducting properties that make them attractive for applications in electronics and quantum computing, as reported by researchers from the Universities of Basel, Bern, Lancaster and Warwick in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.
Graphene consists of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb structure. The material is of interest not only in basic research but also for various applications given to its unique properties, which include excellent electrical conductivity as well as astonishing strength and rigidity. Research teams around the world are working to further expand these characteristics by substituting carbon atoms in the crystal lattice with atoms of different elements. Moreover, the electric and magnetic properties can also be modified by the formation of pores in the lattice.
Ladder-like structure
Now, a team of researchers led by the physicist Professor Ernst Meyer of the University of Basel and the chemist Dr. Shi-Xia Liu from the University of Bern have succeeded in producing the first graphene ribbons whose crystal lattice contains both periodic pores and a regular pattern of nitrogen atoms. The structure of this new material resembles a ladder, with each rung containing two atoms of nitrogen.
Source: “Porous nitrogen-doped graphene ribbons for future electronics”, University of Basel
