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Terahertz graphene optics

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Abstract

The magnitude of the optical sheet conductance of single-layer graphene is universal, and equal to e 2/4ħ (where 2πħ = h (the Planck constant)). As the optical frequency decreases, the conductivity decreases. However, at some frequency in the THz range, the conductivity increases again, eventually reaching the DC value, where the magnitude of the DC sheet conductance generally displays a sample- and doping-dependent value between ∼e 2/h and 100 e 2/h. Thus, the THz range is predicted to be a non-trivial region of the spectrum for electron transport in graphene, and may have interesting technological applications. In this paper, we present the first frequency domain measurements of the absolute value of multilayer graphene (MLG) and single-layer graphene (SLG) sheet conductivity and transparency from DC to 1 THz, and establish a firm foundation for future THz applications of graphene.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Integrated Nanosystems Research Facility, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of California, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA

    Nima Rouhi, Dheeraj Jain, Katayoun Zand, Yung Yu Wang & Peter Burke

  2. Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain

    Santiago Capdevila & Lluis Jofre

  3. Wright State University, Dayton, OH, 45435, USA

    Elliott Brown

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  1. Nima Rouhi
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  2. Santiago Capdevila
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  6. Elliott Brown
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  7. Lluis Jofre
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  8. Peter Burke
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Correspondence to Peter Burke.

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Rouhi, N., Capdevila, S., Jain, D. et al. Terahertz graphene optics. Nano Res. 5, 667–678 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-012-0251-0

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