Highly Ordered Pyrolytic Graphite and the Influence of Defects

3 Highly Ordered Pyrolytic Graphite and the Influence of Defects 

Through the use of highly ordered pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) it is possible to produce an electrode which is predominantly basal in character, but even with such a surface, edge plane defects will be present in the form of steps (as indicated in Fig. 6.1). Careful preparation can lead to a surface where these edge plane defects are up to 1-10 /uM apart. 

Consequently, the use of a two - or three-dimensional simulation is required to successfully model this system. Further reading on this subject can be found in the work of C.E. Banks etal. [Chem. Comm. 7 (2005) 829). 

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