The synthesis of centimeter-scale uniform graphene on Pt foils was accomplished via a traditional ambient pressure chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method. Using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Raman spectroscopy, we reveal the macroscopic continuity, the thickness, as well as the defect state of as-grown graphene. Of particular importance is that the Pt foils after CVD growth have multifaceted texture, which allows us to explore the substrate crystallography effect on the growth rate and the continuity of graphene. By virtue of atomically resolved scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), we conclude that graphene grows mainly in registry with the symmetries of Pt(111), Pt(110), and Pt(100) facets, leading to hexagonal lattices and striped superstructures. Nevertheless, the carbon lattices on interweaving facets with different identities are connected seamlessly, which ensure the graphene growth from nanometer to micrometer levels. With these results, another prototype for clarifying the preliminary growth mechanism of the CVD process is demonstrated as an analogue of graphene on Cu foils.
© 2011 American Chemical Society