Hong-Jun Gao

Buckled Silicene Formation on Ir(111)

Silicene, a two-dimensional (2D) honeycomb structure similar to graphene, has been successfully fabricated on an Ir(111) substrate. It is characterized as a (√7×√7) superstructure with respect to the substrate lattice, as revealed by low energy electron diffraction and scanning tunneling microscopy. Such a superstructure coincides with the (√3×√3) superlattice of silicene. First-principles calculations confirm that this is a (√3×√3)silicene/(√7×√7)Ir(111) configuration and that it has a buckled conformation. Importantly, the calculated electron localization function shows that the silicon adlayer on the Ir(111) substrate has 2D continuity. This work provides a method to fabricate high-quality silicene and an explanation for the formation of the buckled silicene sheet.

Dopamine as a Carbon Source: The Controlled Synthesis of Hollow Carbon Spheres and Yolk‐Structured Carbon Nanocomposites

A facile and versatile synthesis using dopamine as a carbon source gives hollow carbon spheres and yolk-shell Au{at}Carbon nanocomposites. The uniform nature of dopamine coatings and their high carbon yield endow the products with high structural integrity. The Au{at}C nanocomposites are catalytically active.

Buckled Germanene Formation on Pt(111)

Germanene, a 2D honeycomb lattice analogous to graphene, is fabricated on a Pt(111) surface. It exhibits a buckled configuration with a (3 × 3) superlattice coinciding with the substrates (√19 × √19) superstructure. Covalent bonds exist throughout the germanene layer. The resulting high-quality germanene enables researchers to explore the fundamentals of germanene and its potential applications.

Commensurate-incommensurate transition in graphene on hexagonal boron nitride

When a crystal is subjected to a periodic potential, under certain circumstances it can adjust itself to follow the periodicity of the potential, resulting in a commensurate state. Of particular interest are topological defects between the two commensurate phases, such as solitons and domain walls. Here we report a commensurate-incommensurate transition for graphene on top of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN). Depending on the rotation angle between the lattices of the two crystals, graphene can either stretch to adapt to a slightly different hBN periodicity (for small angles, resulting in a commensurate state) or exhibit little adjustment (the incommensurate state). In the commensurate state, areas with matching lattice constants are separated by domain walls that accumulate the generated strain. Such soliton-like objects are not only of significant fundamental interest, but their presence could also explain recent experiments where electronic and optical properties of graphene-hBN heterostructures were observed to be considerably altered.

Graphyne- and graphdiyne-based nanoribbons: Density functional theory calculations of electronic structures

We report on the configurations and electronic properties of graphyne and graphdiyne nanoribbons with armchair and zigzag edges investigated with first principles calculations. Our results show that all the nanoribbons are semiconductors with suitable band gaps similar to silicon. And their band gaps decrease as widths of nanoribbons increase. We also find that the band gap is at the Γ point for all graphdiyne ribbons and it is at the X point for all graphyne ribbons. Of particular interest, the band gap of zigzag graphyne nanoribbons show a unique “step effect” as the width increases. This property is good for tuning of the energy band gap, as in a certain range of the ribbon width, the energy gap remains constant and in reality the edge cannot be as neat as that in a theoretic model.

An Anisotropic Etching Effect in the Graphene Basal Plane

A highly controllable, dry, anisotropic etching technique for graphene sheets has been achieved using hydrogen plasma etching. Zigzag edge formation was achieved by starting the etching at edges and defects and depends strongly on crystallographic orientation of the graphene. This dry, anisotropic etching approach combined with the standard lithographic technique is ideal for scalable graphene tailoring because the etching rates can be precisely controlled and the quality of the graphene can be preserved.

Tunability of Supramolecular Kagome Lattices of Magnetic Phthalocyanines Using Graphene-Based Moire Patterns as Templates

Self-assembly of various phthalocyanine (Pc) molecules and a derivative on an epitaxial graphene monolayer (MG) has been investigated by means of in situ ultrahigh vacuum scanning tunneling microscopy. The formation of regular Kagome lattices that duplicate the lattice of the moire pattern of MG was observed, demonstrating that MG can act as a wonderful template for the fabrication of unique nanoarchitectures with remarkable properties. Varying the central metal ion of the Pc molecule affords Kagome lattices with tunable molecular spins, providing ideal two-dimensional model systems for studying frustration physics.

Epitaxial growth and structural property of graphene on Pt(111)

We report on epitaxial growth of graphene on Pt(111) surface. It was found out that the proportion of different rotational domains varies with growth temperature and the graphene quality can be improved by adjusting both the growth temperature and ethylene exposure. Rippled and unrippled domains of high quality graphene are observed. The adhesive energy and electronic structure of two models, representing rippled and unrippled graphene, are obtained with density functional theory calculation, which shows that the interaction between graphene and Pt(111) surface is very weak and the electronic structure is nearly the same as that of a free standing graphene.

Strong photoluminescence of nanostructured crystalline tungsten oxide thin films

Strong photoluminescence (PL) is observed in nanostructured crystalline tungsten oxide thin films that are prepared by thermal evaporation. Two kinds of films are investigated—one made of nanoparticles and another of nanowires. At room temperature, strong PL emissions at ultraviolet-visible and blue regions are found in both of the films. Compared with the complete absence of emission of bulk phase tungsten oxide powder under the same excitation conditions, our results clearly demonstrate the quantum-confinement-effect-induced photoluminescence in nanostructured tungsten oxides.Strong photoluminescence (PL) is observed in nanostructured crystalline tungsten oxide thin films that are prepared by thermal evaporation. Two kinds of films are investigated—one made of nanoparticles and another of nanowires. At room temperature, strong PL emissions at ultraviolet-visible and blue regions are found in both of the films. Compared with the complete absence of emission of bulk phase tungsten oxide powder under the same excitation conditions, our results clearly demonstrate the quantum-confinement-effect-induced photoluminescence in nanostructured tungsten oxides.

Controlled Synthesis of Large‐Scale, Uniform, Vertically Standing Graphene for High‐Performance Field Emitters

Large-scale, uniform, vertically standing graphene with atomically thin edges are controllably synthesized on copper foil using a microwave-plasma chemical vapor deposition system. A growth mechanism for this system is proposed. This film shows excellent field-emission properties, with low turn-on field of 1.3 V μm(-1) , low threshold field of 3.0 V μm(-1) and a large field-enhancement factor more than 10 000.