Graphene growth from commercial Kapton by direct laser scribing studied by confocal micro-Raman spectroscopy, laser confocal and atomic force microscopies

Abstract In this work, direct laser scribing tests irradiating a commercial Kapton tape with nanosecond UV laser have been performed to investigate a Laser-Induced Graphene (LIG) process. Laser writing powers were changed to investigate the light-material interactions in LIG fabrication processes and to optimize the experimental parameters. LIG lines were characterised by confocal micro-Raman spectroscopy, laser confocal and atomic force microscopies gaining a deep insight on transient formation process of LIG and helping the identification of critical parameters that govern this process. The present study investigates the effects of the laser processing parameters on the LIG quality, with consequent process optimization confirming that LIG is a low-cost straightforward method to directly fabricate graphene sheets on a carbon-rich substrate that will have a growing importance in a near future.