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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Royal Society Open Science

Advancements in bottom-up synthesis routes for monolayer graphene: a review

  • Muhammad A. Awan1,2
  • Szymon Abrahamczyk2
  • Maria Hasan2,3
  • Pavel Kuzník2,4
  • Maria Zdończyk2
  • Alicja Bachmatiuk2,5,6
  • Mark H. Rümmeli2,6,7,8
8 affiliations
  1. 1Centre for Nanotechnology, Faculty of Materials Sciences and Technology, Vysoka skola banska-Technicka univerzita Ostrava 1 , Ostrava, Moravian-Silesian Region, Czech Republic
  2. 2Electron Beam Emergent Additive Manufacturing (EBEAM) Centre, Centre for Nanotechnology (CNT), Centre for Energy and Environmental Technologies (CEET), Vysoka skola banska-Technicka univerzita Ostrava 2 , Ostrava, Moravian-Silesian Region, Czech Republic
  3. 3Centre for Nanotechnology (CNT), Centre for Energy and Environmental Technologies (CEET), Vysoka skola banska-Technicka univerzita Ostrava 3 , Ostrava, Moravian-Silesian Region, Czech Republic
  4. 4Faculty of Materials Science and Technology, Vysoka skola banska-Technicka univerzita Ostrava 4 , Ostrava, Moravian-Silesian Region, Czech Republic
  5. 5Faculty of Chemistry, Wrocław University of Science and Technology 5 , Wrocław, Poland
  6. 6Institute for Materials Chemistry, Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden 6 , Dresden, SN, Germany
  7. 7Soochow Institute for Energy and Materials Innovation, Soochow University 7 , Suzhou, People's Republic of China
  8. 8School of Smart Materials and Future Energy, Anhui Normal University 8 , Wuhu 214002, People's Republic of China
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Abstract

The synthesis of monolayer graphene has progressed from exfoliation to bottom-up strategies, enabling increasing atomic-level control. This review compares key routes, chemical vapour deposition (CVD), SiC epitaxy, arc discharge, molecular assembly and single-atom catalysts (SACs) and evaluates their mechanisms, scalability and quality bottlenecks. CVD remains the most mature and scalable approach, delivering centimetre-scale-single-crystal films through optimized substrates, roll-to-roll annealing and dry transfer, yet transfer-induced defects and wafer-scale non-uniformity persist. SiC epitaxy enables transfer-free, wafer-scale graphene with well-aligned domains, but requires high temperatures and costly wafers. Arc discharge offers catalyst-free production of crystalline graphene flakes, although monolayer yield and purity remain limited. Molecular assembly provides unmatched structural programmability and atomic precision in nanoribbons and nanographene islands, typically restricted to micrometre scales and stringent conditions. SAC-mediated growth represents a precision limit, where isolated metal atoms catalyse single-carbon insertion or removal at graphene edges, though current demonstrations remain largely single-event observations. Complementing these routes, artificial intelligence/machine learning is increasingly used for parameter optimization, predictive modelling of domain size/uniformity/defects and automated quality control (convolutional neural network/ generative modelling and YOLO-based defect detection). Overall, industrially viable, defect-free monolayer graphene will require combining scalable growth, transfer-free integration, atomic-precision and AI-enabled closed-loop optimization.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{awan2026advancements,
  title = {{Advancements in bottom-up synthesis routes for monolayer graphene: a review}},
  author = {Muhammad A. Awan and Szymon Abrahamczyk and Maria Hasan and Pavel Kuzník and Maria Zdończyk and Alicja Bachmatiuk and Mark H. Rümmeli},
  journal = {Royal Society Open Science},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1098/rsos.260473},
  url = {https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rsos/article/13/10/260473/483797/Advancements-in-bottom-up-synthesis-routes-for},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Advancements in bottom-up synthesis routes for monolayer graphene: a review
AU  - Muhammad A. Awan
AU  - Szymon Abrahamczyk
AU  - Maria Hasan
AU  - Pavel Kuzník
AU  - Maria Zdończyk
AU  - Alicja Bachmatiuk
AU  - Mark H. Rümmeli
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/21
JO  - Royal Society Open Science
DO  - 10.1098/rsos.260473
UR  - https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rsos/article/13/10/260473/483797/Advancements-in-bottom-up-synthesis-routes-for
AB  - The synthesis of monolayer graphene has progressed from exfoliation to bottom-up strategies, enabling increasing atomic-level control. This review compares key routes, chemical vapour deposition (CVD), SiC epitaxy, arc discharge, molecular assembly and single-atom catalysts (SACs) and evaluates their mechanisms, scalability and quality bottlenecks. CVD remains the most mature and scalable approach, delivering centimetre-scale-single-crystal films through optimized substrates, roll-to-roll annealing and dry transfer, yet transfer-induced defects and wafer-scale non-uniformity persist. SiC epitaxy enables transfer-free, wafer-scale graphene with well-aligned domains, but requires high temperatures and costly wafers. Arc discharge offers catalyst-free production of crystalline graphene flakes, although monolayer yield and purity remain limited. Molecular assembly provides unmatched structural programmability and atomic precision in nanoribbons and nanographene islands, typically restricted to micrometre scales and stringent conditions. SAC-mediated growth represents a precision limit, where isolated metal atoms catalyse single-carbon insertion or removal at graphene edges, though current demonstrations remain largely single-event observations. Complementing these routes, artificial intelligence/machine learning is increasingly used for parameter optimization, predictive modelling of domain size/uniformity/defects and automated quality control (convolutional neural network/ generative modelling and YOLO-based defect detection). Overall, industrially viable, defect-free monolayer graphene will require combining scalable growth, transfer-free integration, atomic-precision and AI-enabled closed-loop optimization.
SN  - 2054-5703
ER  -