Graphene as a flexible electrode: review of fabrication approaches

Abstract

In recent years, the technological advancement of supercapacitors has been increasing exponentially due to the high demand in electronic consumer products. As so, researchers have found a way to meet that demand by fabricating graphene. As developments are made toward the future, two big advancements to be made are large-scale fabrication of graphene and fabricating graphene as a flexible electrode. This would allow for use in larger products and for manipulation of the unique properties of graphene to accommodate superior design alternatives. While large scale production is still mentioned, this review is specifically focusing on different methods used to fabricate graphene as a flexible electrode. Various fabrication methods, such as Hummers' method, chemical vapor deposition, epitaxial growth, and exfoliation of graphite oxide, used to fabricate graphene in such a way that allows flexibility and utilization of graphene's mechanical and electrical properties are discussed. Additionally, a section on environmentally friendly fabrication approaches is presented and discussed.