A study of graphene decorated with metal nanoparticles

Abstract

Interaction of nanoparticles of metals such as Ag, Au, Pt and Pd with graphene has been examined by employing Raman spectroscopy and first-principles calculations. There is a significant shift of the G-band as well as of the other bands, in addition to variation in the relative intensities of D- and 2D-bands when the metal nanoparticles are deposited on graphene. The shifts in the G- and D-bands show meaningful trends with the ionization energies of the metals as well as the charge-transfer energies. Results from the calculations underscore the importance of charge-transfer between the metal particles and graphene. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.