EUROPEAN CONGRESS AND EXHIBITION ON ADVANCED MATERIALS AND PROCESSES - EUROMAT 2021

Significant advances in the synthesis of low-dimensional materials with unique and tuneable electrical, optical and magnetic properties have led to discoveries ranging from single-photon sources to the observation of Majorana states. However, the lack of ability to precisely integrate individual nanomaterials into devices at scale limits their technological application. In this talk we will examine how graphene nanogaps can be used to directly capture single nanoparticles from solution at predefined locations by exploiting the large electric field gradients generated around their point-like, atomically sharp electrodes. First, we will demonstrate the technique by showing how gold nanoparticles can be trapped to form graphene-gold-graphene devices which behave as single-electron transistors at low temperatures. Then, we will go on to discuss and show how other nanomaterials can be trapped and integrated into nanoscale devices. This platform offers a route to the creation of novel low-dimensional devices, nano- and opto-electronic applications and the study of fundamental quantum transport phenomena.