Few-layer graphene films prepared from commercial copper foil tape

We present a facile, versatile and cost-effective method for the synthesis of mono- and bilayer graphene films on copper substrate using as carbon feedstock the pyrolysis products of the conductive adhesive polymer of a commercial copper tape commonly used in electron microscopy. A copper tape with adhesive on both sides is subjected to a heat treatment during 15 min at temperatures of 900, 1000, and 1050 °C under the flow of an Ar + 3%H2 gas mixture. With this treatment, the tape adhesive polymer is pyrolized and the interaction of its decomposition products with the copper substrate gives rise to a graphene film of good structural quality mixed with amorphous carbon residues of the pyrolysis. For a temperature of 1050 °C (few degrees below the melting point of Cu), mono- and bilayer coexisting domains of graphene are obtained with almost 100% area coverage of the Cu substrate. For lower heat treatment temperatures, area coverage is reduced to 60–70% and the graphene film becomes predominantly bilayer. The treatment at the lowest temperature of 900 °C results in isolated hexagonal domains of graphene intermixed with a large amount of amorphous carbon residues and large uncovered areas of oxidized copper substrate. These results indicate that the number of active species for the formation of graphene films increases with increasing temperature, nevertheless limited by the copper melting point. Characterization of the obtained samples was performed with scanning electron microscopy, Raman scattering, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy.