Defect characterization in graphene and carbon nanotubes using Raman spectroscopy

Abstract

This review discusses advances that have been made in the study of defect-induced double-resonance processes in nanographite, graphene and carbon nanotubes, mostly coming from combining Raman spectroscopic experiments with microscopy studies and from the development of new theoretical models. The disorder-induced peak frequencies and intensities are discussed, with particular emphasis given to how the disorder-induced features evolve with increasing amounts of disorder. We address here two systems, ion-bombarded graphene and nanographite, where disorder is represented by point defects and boundaries, respectively. Raman spectroscopy is used to study the ‘atomic structure’ of the defect, making it possible, for example, to distinguish between zigzag and armchair edges, based on selection rules of phonon scattering. Finally, a different concept is discussed, involving the effect that defects have on the lineshape of Raman-allowed peaks, owing to local electron and phonon energy renormalization. Such effects can be observed by near-field optical measurements on the G ′ feature for doped single-walled carbon nanotubes.