ELECTROLYTIC EFFECT on GROWTH of GRAPHENE QUANTUM DOTS VIA ELECTROCHEMICAL PROCESS

Abstract

Quantum dots (QDs) are materials grown in confined dimension also known as 0D materials. QDs can be synthesized in many shapes and forms through various methods making the materials extremely versatile and can be fine-tuned for appropriate applications. Among the potentially scalable methods, Electrochemical process is considered as one of the top-down approaches with the highest potential for scalability and easy-to-process methodology while electrolyte and pH level can play various important roles on the final product. In this work, we grew and studied the effect of electrolytic solution in the growth of graphene quantum dots (GQDs) in colloidal forms using cheap graphite as precursor in KCl and NaOH as electrolytes in various concentrations. It can be inferred from our results that when KCl and NaOH were used in combination with citric acid, the optoelectrical properties and hydrodynamic properties of the resulting growth can be fine-tuned to match the required applications. π-π electronics excitation was identified with small tunability of 487-500nm wavelength while the hydrodynamic size varied from 80-140nm with resulting pH range from 3.0-9.5 adjustable to appropriate applications, while the TEM results showed physical particle size of 1.7-3.7nm.