Preparation and Tribological Properties of Graphene Oxide/Polydopamine-Derived Carbon Films on Silicon Substrate

In this study, dopamine and graphene oxide (GO) solutions were spin-coated on the silicon wafers to obtain the GO/polydopamine (PDA) films. The carbon films were subsequently fabricated by annealing the GO/PDA films in argon atmosphere. The atomic force microscopy analysis was performed to characterize the morphology and tribological properties of the composite films. The developed carbon films exhibited lower friction coefficient and high adhesion between composite films and substrate as compared to the untreated films, which was attributed to the enhanced hydrophobicity, improved hardness and elastic modulus and chemical bonding of the films with substrate. The findings obtained in this study would lead to an efficient design of the anti-wear nanofilms for the micro-/nanoelectronic mechanical systems.