Folded graphene nanochannels via pulsed patterning of graphene

We present a resist-free patterning technique to form electrically contacted graphene nanochannels via localized burning by a pulsed white light source. The technique uses end-point detection to stop the burning process at a fixed resistance. By this method folded graphene nanochannels down to 30 nm in width with controllable resistance ranging from 10 k$\Omega $ to 100 k$\Omega $ is achieved [1]. Folding of the graphene sheet takes place during patterning, which provides very straight edges (zigzag/armchair) as identified by AFM, SEM and TEM. Electrical transport measurements for the nanochannels show a non-linear behavior of the current vs source-drain voltage as the resistance goes above 20 k$\Omega $ indicating conduction tunneling effects. The method described can be interesting not only for fundamental studies correlating edge folded structures with electrical transport but also as a promising path for fabricating graphene devices in situ. This method might also be extended to create nanochannels in other 2D materials. [1] I. Silvestre et al., APL, 106, 153105, 2015.