Optical modification and patterning of graphene by laser oxidation

Irradiation of graphene with femtosecond pulses just below the ablation threshold induces graphene to react with adsorbed oxygen and water present in ambient air, leading to oxidative functionalization without breaking the carbon lattice integrity. This optically induced local functionalization of graphene leads to many opportunities for development of applications via processes such as modification of electronic properties, locally selective immobilization of proteins, modification of optical properties, tuning of the response of sensors, or affecting molecular self-assembly. As the latest developments, local laser activation of chemically relatively inert graphene enables area-selective atomic or molecular layer deposition whereas coupling the laser pulse with a scattering near field optical microscope enables laser writing of features with ~10 – 30 nm size.