Extraordinary thermal conductivity of graphene: Possibility of thermal management applications

We review the results of our investigation of the thermal conductivity of the suspended single-layer graphene. Using an original non-contact optical technique we discovered experimentally that the thermal conductivity of suspended graphene flakes with low coupling to the substrate is extremely high and can exceeds that of bulk graphite and carbon nanotubes. The high values of the thermal conductivity of graphene and their dependence on the graphene flake size were explained within the framework of Klemens theory. Superior thermal properties of graphene benefit all proposed graphene device applications and may lead to new high-heat flux thermal management solutions for advanced electronics.