Bright electroluminescence from single graphene nanoribbon junctions

TL;DR

This study demonstrates bright, tunable electroluminescence from individual graphene nanoribbons in a nanoscale circuit, revealing new optical transitions and potential for graphene-based light emitters.

Contribution

First experimental observation of electroluminescence from single GNRs integrated in a realistic electronic circuit, with insights into localized electronic states involved in emission.

Findings

Bright, narrow red light emission observed from single GNR junctions.

Emission energy can be tuned by bias voltage, always below the GNR band gap.

Electronic states at GNR termini are involved in the emission process.

Abstract

Thanks to their highly tunable band gaps, graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) with atomically precise edges are emerging as mechanically and chemically robust candidates for nanoscale light emitting devices of modulable emission color. While their optical properties have been addressed theoretically in depth, only few experimental studies exist, limited to ensemble measurements and without any attempt to integrate them in an electronic-like circuit. Here we report on the electroluminescence of individual GNRs suspended between the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) and a Au(111) substrate, constituting thus a realistic opto-electronic circuit. Emission spectra of such GNR junctions reveal a bright and narrow band emission of red light, whose energy can be tuned with the bias voltage applied to the junction, but always lying below the gap of infinite GNRs. Comparison with {\it ab initio} calculations indicate that the emission involves electronic states localized at the GNR termini. Our results shed light on unpredicted optical transitions in GNRs and provide a promising route for the realization of bright, robust and controllable graphene-based light emitting devices.