Stability and spectroscopy of single nitrogen dopants in graphene at elevated temperatures.
basic_science · Level V
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- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 25389658.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1021/nn5054798.
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Abstract
Single nitrogen (N) dopants in graphene are investigated using atomic-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) combined with electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). Using an in situ heating holder at 500 °C provided us with clean graphene surfaces, and we demonstrate that isolated N substitutional atoms remain localized and stable in the graphene lattice even during local sp(2) bond reconstruction. The high stability of isolated N dopants enabled us to acquire 2D EELS maps with simultaneous ADF-STEM images to map out the local bonding variations. We show that a substitutional N dopant causes changes in the EELS of the carbon (C) atoms it is directly bonded to. An upshift in the π* peak of the C K-edge EELS of ∼0.5 eV is resolved and supported by density functional theory simulations.