Hydroxyl-decorated graphene systems as candidates for organic metal-free ferroelectrics, multiferroics, and high-performance proton battery cathode materials

Authors

Menghao Wu, Virginia Commonwealth University
John D. Burton, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Evgeny Y. Tsymbal, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Xiao Cheng Zeng, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Purusottam Jena, Virginia Commonwealth UniversityFollow

Date of this Version

2-19-2013

Citation

PHYSICAL REVIEW B 87, 081406 (2013). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevB.87.081406

Comments

Copyright (c) 2013 American Physical Society. Used by permission.

Abstract

Using a first-principles method we show that graphene based materials, functionalized with hydroxyl groups, constitute a class of multifunctional, lightweight, and nontoxic organic materials with functional properties such as ferroelectricity, multiferroicity, and can be used as proton battery cathode materials. For example, the polarizations of semihydroxylized graphane and graphone, as well as fully hydroxylized graphane, are much higher than any organic ferroelectric materials known to date. Further, hydroxylized graphene nanoribbons with proton vacancies at the end can have much larger dipole moments. They may also be applied as high-capacity cathode materials with a specific capacity that is six times larger than lead-acid batteries and five times that of lithium-ion batteries.