Evolution of interfacial intercalation chemistry on epitaxial graphene/SiC by surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy

A rapid and facile evaluation of the effects of physical and chemical processes on the interfacial layer between epitaxial graphene monolayers on SiC(0 0 0 1) surfaces is essential for applications in electronics, photonics, and optoelectronics. Here, the evolution of the atomic scale epitaxial graphene-buffer-layer-SiC interface through hydrogen intercalation, thermal annealings, UV-ozone etching and oxygen exposure is studied by means of single microparticle mediated surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (smSERS). The evolution of the interfacial chemistry in the buffer layer is monitored through the Raman band at 2132 cm(-1) corresponding to the Si H stretch mode. Graphene quality is monitored directly by the selectively enhanced Raman signal of graphene compared to the SiC substrate signal. Through smSERS, a simultaneous correlation between optimized hydrogen intercalation in epitaxial graphene/SiC and an increase in graphene quality is uncovered. Following UV-ozone treatment, a fully hydrogen passivated interface is retained, while a moderate degradation in the quality of the hydrogen intercalated quasi-freestanding graphene is observed. While hydrogen intercalated defect free quasi-freestanding graphene is expected to be robust upon UV-ozone, thermal annealing, and oxygen exposure, ozonolytic reactivity at the edges of H-intercalated defected graphene results in enhanced amorphization of the quasi-freestanding (compared to non-intercalated) graphene, leading ultimately to its complete etching. (C) 20(1)4 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.