Tailoring graphite with the goal of achieving single sheets

We demonstrate the tailoring of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) to obtain uniformly sized islands of up to several microns in size. There has already been some research on manipulating individual sheets on HOPG surfaces with scanning probe microscope tips; such sheets were obtained either accidentally or with a less controllable indenting technique. Here we present a different approach, which is more reliable and controllable. The HOPG surface was first patterned to create an array of small graphite islands by reactive ion etching of the HOPG surface with an oxygen plasma. These islands were then manipulated with an atomic force microscope tip. Carbon nanotubes represent a promising material for nanotechnology and can be considered as a graphene sheet rolled into a seamless cylinder. While carbon nanotubes are synthesized successfully with laser ablation, carbon arc, or chemical vapour deposition techniques, we speculate that it might be possible, by the controlled fabrication of graphene sheets, to form nanotubes or other novel motifs of use for nanotechnology.