Department of Physics

Professor C.J. Foot
email: <c.foot@physics.ox.ac.uk>

Electrostatic trapping of graphene and layer-by-layer deposition of crystals The objective of this experimental project is to hold single flakes of graphene at a fixed position the centre of vacuum chamber using oscillating electric fields and investigate ways to control its rotational motion. Each graphene flake is charged and behaves like an ion in a Paul trap. The necessary apparatus has been constructed closely following the work of Kane [1] and the work is predominantly practical. Light scattering is used to observe the rotational motion of the two-dimensional sheets. A potential application of this technique [1] is the controllable deposition of sheets on to a substrate hence building up structures layer by layer. If proven with graphene this method can be extended to makes sandwiches using other single atomic layer materials such as boron nitride.

[1] Levitated spinning graphene flakes in an electric quadrupole ion trap. B.E. Kane. Phys. Rev. B 82, 115441 (2010)