Fabrication of nanographene using nickel supported by a tungsten mesh

Abstract A method for the fabrication of nanographene films using pentacene and H 2 gas was proposed. A tungsten (W) mesh, a W mesh coated with nickel (Ni) (Ni/W mesh), and a W mesh supporting Ni (W Ni mesh) were used as catalysts to synthesize the nanographene films. The decomposition temperature of the pentacene molecule using the Ni/W mesh was lower than that for the W mesh. The nanocarbon films prepared using the Ni/W and the W Ni meshes had different film properties compared with those made using the W mesh. These nanocarbon films had an absorption peak similar to that of graphene around 270 nm. In addition, on the W Ni mesh, which had a Ni surface area ratio of 3%, pentacene molecules coexisted with 6,13-dihydropentacene molecules. It is found that the pentacene multimer yield and the polymerization reaction rate were enhanced using the W Ni mesh. The W Ni mesh is useful as a catalyst for the rapid formation (0.03 nm/s) of nanocarbon films consisting of nanographene at temperatures below 250 °C.