Method for forming a graphene layer on the surface of a substrate including a silicon layer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9053933-B2
Application number	US-201214348653-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 28, 2012
Priority date	Sep 30, 2011
Publication date	Jun 9, 2015
Grant date	Jun 9, 2015

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for forming a graphene layer ( 105 ) on the surface of a substrate ( 100 ) including a silicon layer ( 101 ), the method comprising the consecutive steps of: forming ( 1 ) a silicon-carbide film ( 103 ) on a free surface of the silicon layer and gradually heating the substrate until the silicon of at least the first row of atoms of the silicon-carbide film is sublimated so as to form the graphene layer on the silicon-carbide film. According to the invention, a silicon layer, the free surface of which is stepped, is used.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A process for forming a graphene layer on a surface of a substrate comprising a silicon layer, the process comprising, in succession, steps of:
forming a silicon carbide film on a free surface of the silicon layer; and
gradually heating the substrate until sublimation of silicon in at least the first lattice-arrays of atoms of the silicon carbide film, in order to form the graphene layer on the silicon carbide film,
wherein the free surface of the silicon layer is a stepped free surface; and
wherein the process comprises the prior step of preheating the substrate under a controlled flow of gaseous silicon, before the step of gradually heating the substrate until sublimation of silicon in at least the first lattice-arrays of atoms in the silicon carbide film.

2. The process as claimed in claim 1 , in which the stepped free surface comprises treads separated by risers that have substantially identical rises, whereas the treads have substantially identical runs.

3. The process as claimed in claim 1 , in which the stepped free surface comprises treads separated by risers that extend substantially perpendicularly to two adjacent treads.

4. The process as claimed in claim 1 , in which the stepped free surface comprises treads separated by risers, each tread extending substantially parallel to a holder on which the substrate rests.

5. The process as claimed in claim 1 , in which the stepped free surface comprises treads separated by risers that have a rise between 2 and 3 ångströms, whereas the treads have a run between 35 and 40 ångströms.

6. The process as claimed in claim 1 , in which the substrate is gradually heated in a controlled inert gas atmosphere.

7. The process as claimed in claim 6 , in which the inert gas is nitrogen.

Assignees

• Centre Nat Rech Scient

Inventors

• Ouerghi Abdelkarim

Classifications

• H10P14/3208

  Silicon carbide · CPC title

• H10P14/2925

  Surface structures · CPC title

• H10P14/2905

  Silicon, silicon germanium or germanium · CPC title

• H10P14/20

  of semiconductor materials · CPC title

• H10P14/3406 Primary

  Carbon, e.g. diamond-like carbon · CPC title