Photochemical reaction on graphene surfaces controlled by substrate-surface modification with polar self-assembled monolayers

TL;DR

This study demonstrates a simple molecular gating method using polar self-assembled monolayers to control photochemical reactions on graphene surfaces without complex device fabrication.

Contribution

It introduces a novel molecular gating technique employing polar SAMs to modulate photochemical reactions on 2D materials like graphene.

Findings

Molecular gating effectively controls graphene's photochemical reactions.

Raman spectroscopy confirms the influence of SAMs on reaction dynamics.

The method does not require transistor fabrication or external voltage application.

Abstract

The unique thinness of two-dimensional materials enables control over chemical phenomena at their surfaces by means of various gating techniques. For example, gating methods based on field-effect-transistor configurations have been achieved. Here, we report a molecular gating approach that employs a local electric field generated by a polar self-assembled monolayer formed on a supporting substrate. By performing Raman scattering spectroscopy analyses with a proper data correction procedure, we found that molecular gating is effective for controlling solid phase photochemical reactions of graphene with benzoyl peroxide. Molecular gating offers a simple method to control chemical reactions on the surfaces of two-dimensional materials because it requires neither the fabrication of a transistor structure nor the application of an external voltage.