Strong substrate effects of Joule heating in graphene electronics

Abstract

The effect of Joule heating on graphene electronic properties is investigated by self-consistent use of full-band Monte Carlo electron dynamics and three-dimensional heat transfer simulations. Several technologically important substrate materials are examined: SiO2, SiC, hexagonal BN, and diamond. Results illustrate that the choice of substrate has a major impact via heat conduction and surface polar phonon scattering. Particularly, the poor thermal conductivity of SiO2 leads to significant Joule heating and saturation velocity degradation in graphene characterized by the 1/root n decay. Considering the overall characteristics, BN appears to compare favorably against the other substrate choices for graphene electronic applications. VC 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3668113]