Abstract:
Graphene-based materials hold promise due to their exceptional electronic and thermal
transport, mechanical properties, high specific surface area, and that they can act as an atom
thick layer, barrier, or membrane. Our early top-down micromechanical exfoliation
approaches [1,2] conceived of in 1998 yielded multilayer graphene. Two main research areas
of our group are: (i) CVD growth of large area graphene on metal substrates and studies of
such material, and (ii) the generation, study, and use of colloids consisting of graphene-based
platelets dispersed in liquids. An update of our work on CVD growth of graphene on metal
substrates ‘graphene’ colloidal suspensions will be given. A history of experimental work on
graphene (from discovery in 1969 to now) is provided at:
http://bucky-central.me.utexas.edu/RuoffsPDFs/Ruoff%20Graphene%20December%202010.

This work is supported by DARPA, ONR, SWAN NRI, NSF, ARO, AEC, and Graphene Energy, Inc.
1. Lu XK, Yu MF, Huang H, and Ruoff RS, Tailoring graphite with the goal of achieving single sheets,
Nanotechnology, 10, 269-272 (1999).
2. Lu XK, Huang H, Nemchuk N, and Ruoff RS, Patterning of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite by oxygen plasma
etching, Applied Physics Letters, 75, 193-195 (1999).