Effect of e-beam irradiation on graphene layer grown by chemical vapor deposition

We have grown graphene by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and transferred it onto Si/SiO2 substrates to make tens of micron scale devices for Raman spectroscopy study. The effect of electron beam (e-beam) irradiation of various doses (600 to 12 000 μC/cm2) on CVD grown graphene has been examined by using Raman spectroscopy. It is found that the radiation exposures result in the appearance of the strong disorder D band attributed the damage to the lattice. The evolution of peak frequencies, intensities, and widths of the main Raman bands of CVD graphene is analyzed as a function of defect created by e-beam irradiation. Especially, the D and G peak evolution with increasing radiation dose follows the amorphization trajectory, which suggests transformation of graphene to the nanocrystalline and then to amorphous form. We have also estimated the strain induced by e-beam irradiation in CVD graphene. These results obtained for CVD graphene are in line with previous findings reported for the mechanically exfoliated graphene [D. Teweldebrhan and A. A. Balandin, Appl. Phys. Lett. 94, 013101 (2009)]. The results have important implications for CVD graphene characterization and device fabrication, which rely on the electron microscopy.