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Is graphene aromatic?

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Abstract

We analyze the chemical bonding in graphene using a fragmental approach, the adaptive natural density partitioning method, electron sharing indices, and nucleus-independent chemical shift indices. We prove that graphene is aromatic, but its aromaticity is different from the aromaticity in benzene, coronene, or circumcoronene. Aromaticity in graphene is local with two π-electrons delocalized over every hexagon ring. We believe that the chemical bonding picture developed for graphene will be helpful for understanding chemical bonding in defects such as point defects, single-, double-, and multiple vacancies, carbon adatoms, foreign adatoms, substitutional impurities, and new materials that are derivatives of graphene.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Utah State University, 0300 Old Main Hill, Logan, Utah, 84322, USA

    Ivan A. Popov & Alexander I. Boldyrev

  2. Department of Physical and Colloid Chemistry, Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia, 6 Miklukho-Maklaya St., Moscow, 117198, Russian Federation

    Konstantin V. Bozhenko

Authors
  1. Ivan A. Popov
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  2. Konstantin V. Bozhenko
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  3. Alexander I. Boldyrev
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Correspondence to Konstantin V. Bozhenko or Alexander I. Boldyrev.

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Popov, I.A., Bozhenko, K.V. & Boldyrev, A.I. Is graphene aromatic?. Nano Res. 5, 117–123 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-011-0192-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-011-0192-z

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