(2015-04-29) Professor Dong Il Yeom develops graphene-optical fiber devices available for electrical control

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NEW (2015-04-29) Professor Dong Il Yeom develops graphene-optical fiber devices available for electrical control

2015-05-06
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A research team led by Ajou University’s Professor Dong Il Yeom (Department of Physics, Graduate School’s Department of Energy System Research, pictured above) has developed graphene-optical fiber devices available for electrical control for the first time in the world.

Graphene, a single atomic layer that combines carbon atoms in a beehive shape, is drawing attention as a “new dream material” since its high conductivity, transparency, and flexibility allow for the production of next-generation electric devices, photoelectric devices, and optical devices such as semiconductors, displays, and solar cells. However, it has been difficult to make optical devices and photoelectric devices with highly efficient photoreaction capacities from the single-layer graphene because its light absorbing rate is around a mere 2.3%.

The research team led by Professor Yeom developed the world’s first graphene-optical fiber photoelectric devices by combining Field Effect Transistor (FET) and optical fiber, which has previously been difficult due to technological limitations. The team also succeeded in developing an ultra-short pulse optical fiber laser that can be electrically controlled via photoelectric devices. FET is called a unipolar transistor because only single polarity electrons are involved in the electricity conduction within semi-conductors.

The photoelectric device developed by the research team is highly efficient, allowing for adjusting the light absorption rate up to 90% through interactions between graphene and the damped wave (evanescent wave) generated by the light moving along optical fiber.

Professor Yeom said, “The graphene-optical fiber photoelectric device our team has developed can be directly applied to the optical fiber laser that is now being used in precise laser processing for industrial uses or in building laser-enabled weapons. I expect that the device can also contribute to developing photoelectronic or optical devices based on highly efficient graphene.”

The research findings were published in the April 2015 issue of Nature Communications, a world-class science journal (Impact Factor over the past 5 years: 11.023), with the title of “Active Control of All-fiber Graphene Devices with Electrical Gating.”

Eun Jeong Lee (graduate from the University’s master’s course), Seon Yeong Choi (postdoctoral course), and Hwan Seong Jeong (combined master’s/PhD program) took part in the research as first authors, and Professor Fabian Rotermund (co-corresponding author), Professor Ji Yong Park, Professor Yeong Hwan Ahn, and Professor Gwang Jun Ahn collaborated with the research team. The study was conducted with the support for basic research projects carried out by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning and the National Research Foundation of Korea.

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