Triazine-Based Graphitic Carbon Nitride: a Two-Dimensional Semiconductor

DOI: 10.1002/ange.201402191

Authors: Gerardo Algara-siller (Universität Ulm) , Nikolai Severin (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) , Sam Chong (University of Liverpool) , Torbjörn Björkman (Aalto University) , Robert Palgrave (University College London) , Andrea Laybourn (University of Liverpool) , Markus Antonietti (Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces) , Yaroslav Z. Khimyak (University of Liverpool) , Arkady V. Krasheninnikov (Aalto University) , Jürgen P. Rabe (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) , Ute Kaiser (Universität Ulm) , Andrew I. Cooper (University of Liverpool) , Arne Thomas (Technische Universität Berlin) , Michael Bojdys (University of Liverpool)
Co-authored by industrial partner: No

Type: Journal Paper
Journal: Angewandte Chemie , VOL 126 (29) , PAGES 7580 - 7585

State: Published (Approved)
Published: July 2014

Abstract: Graphitic carbon nitride has been predicted to be structurally analogous to carbon-only graphite, yet with an inherent bandgap. We have grown, for the first time, macroscopically large crystalline thin films of triazine-based, graphitic carbon nitride (TGCN) using an ionothermal, interfacial reaction starting with the abundant monomer dicyandiamide. The films consist of stacked, two-dimensional (2D) crystals between a few and several hundreds of atomic layers in thickness. Scanning force and transmission electron microscopy show long-range, in-plane order, while optical spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and density functional theory calculations corroborate a direct bandgap between 1.6 and 2.0?eV. Thus TGCN is of interest for electronic devices, such as field-effect transistors and light-emitting diodes.

Subject Areas: Chemistry


Instruments: I11-High Resolution Powder Diffraction