Thermally Induced Dynamics of Dislocations in Graphene at Atomic Resolution

Thermally induced dislocation movements are important in understanding the effects of high temperature annealing on modifying the crystal structure. We use an in situ heating holder in an aberration corrected transmission electron microscopy to study the movement of dislocations in suspended monolayer graphene up to 800 °C. Control of temperature enables the differentiation of electron beam induced effects and thermally driven processes. At room temperature, the dynamics of dislocation behavior is driven by the electron beam irradiation at 80 kV; however at higher temperatures, increased movement of the dislocation is observed and provides evidence for the influence of thermal energy to the system. An analysis of the dislocation movement shows both climb and glide processes, including new complex pathways for migration and large nanoscale rapid jumps between fixed positions in the lattice. The improved understanding of the high temperature dislocation movement provides insights into annealing processes in graphene and the behavior of defects with increased heat.