Dr Julian Moger, Dr Euan Hendry and Dr David Horsell
Graphene is a major discover in materials science and its unique properties promise a vast range of practical applications. However developments are hampered by a lack of suitable fabrication techniques and the difficulty in establishing whether samples are indeed single layer carbon rather than a multilayer (graphite). Currently, sample quality is assessed using Raman scattering but Raman scattering is an inherently weak effect and long sampling times are required for a single graphene flake which prohibit high-throughput analysis which will be required for large scale fabrication of graphene. We propose to investigate a multiphoton variant of Raman scattering, stimulated Raman scattering (SRS), which has significantly greater sensitivity than Raman scattering. With simple modification to existing equipment in the multiphoton imaging laboratory in the Biomedical Physics Group SRS microscopy of many hundred graphene flakes can be performed on a time scale of several seconds.
See our list of other potential PhD projects in Biomedical Physics and Quantum systems and nanomaterials.