Contact resistance Study of “edge-contacted” metal-graphene interfaces

The contact resistance R
_C
of “edge-contacted” metal-graphene interfaces is systematically studied. Our experiments demonstrate a reduction of contact resistance by intentional patterning of graphene to create “edge contacts”. The parameter space for different hole patterns in graphene is explored. The contact resistance is reduced from 1518 Ωμm for structures without holes to 456 Ωμm in structures with holes of 500 nm diameter everywhere under the contact. These values were achieved at the Dirac point, i.e. at the point of minimum carrier density in graphene and they correspond to a reduction of 70%. These results provide a clear path towards higher performance in graphene based electronic devices, which are often limited by unreliable and high R
_C
.