ABSTRACT
For many years graphene was deemed an “academic” material where its perfect honeycomb monolayer structure of carbon atoms was treated solely as a theoretical model for describing the properties of various carbon-based materials such as graphite, fullerenes, and carbon nanotubes. Older theoretical predictions [1,2,3], studying pristine two-dimensional (2D) crystals, presumed graphene would be unstable in reality due to thermal ¦uctuations that prevent long-range crystalline order at •nite temperatures. This presumption was strongly supported by various experimental investigations with thin •lms in which the samples became unstable as their thickness was reduced. Now, early in the twenty-•rst century, graphene has emerged as a real sample [4,5]. The initial works by Geim and Novoselov showed the isolation of astonishingly thin carbon •lms and eventually monolayer graphene by simply using scotch tape. Since its discovery, the variety of physical phenomena explored using graphene has expanded at a remarkably fast pace inspiring a wide variety of novel technological applications. Spurred on by potential future applications
1.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................1 1.2 Basic Electronic Properties of Graphene-Based Structures .............................2
