2014 - A Summer to RememberRET Program at FIU

byMichael Weiss

With special gratitude to my mentor, Dr. Irene Calizo

and the students

Ingrid Sadegh

who made the learning experience so unforgettable.

Monir Kris

Prior to working in the lab, it was necessary to complete several safety trainings:

Chemical Handling Safety Basic Principles

Environmental Awareness Parts 1 and 2

EPA: Hazardous Waste Awareness

Fire Safety

HAZCOM: In Sync with GHS

Laboratory Safety: The Finer Points

Laser Safety

PPE: Don’t Start Work Without It

Safe Use of Fumehoods

Small Spills and Leaks

My lab experiences began with being trained to use the Hall Effect Measurement System. Using this, I was able to collect the following types of data on

graphene samples.

Bulk Concentration

Sheet Concentration

Mobility

Resistivity

Cross Hall Coefficients

Magneto-Resistance

Conductivity

Vertical/Horizontal Ratios

Next, I was taught how to transfer graphene from copper foil to another substrate. This process

occurred in three phases.

Phase 1 Cleaning

PMMA Coating to protect the graphene

Dry Etching

Wet Etching with ferric chloride

Phase 2o Cleaning of a silicon dioxide

substrate through sonication and heating with acetone, isopropanol, and deionized water

o Dry etchingo Scooping out graphene from a

copper etch batho Cleaning the graphene sample

with deionized watero Placing graphene sample on

the clean silicon dioxide wafer

o Spin coating with PMMAo Cleaning with acetone, isopropanol,

and deionized watero Drying with nitrogen

Phase 3

Later, I was taught how to complete an exfoliation process.

Breaking the silicon dioxide wafer into pieces

Cleaning the wafer pieces via sonication and heating with acetone, isopropanol, and deionized water

Spreading a sample of graphite or molybdenum sulfide on a piece of scotch tape

Transferring the graphite or molybdenum sulfide to the silicon dioxide wafer pieces

Heating these wafer pieces at 70°C

Examining the wafer pieces for purity

Additionally, I became proficient in operating the Raman Spectrometer to characterize graphene.

Static spectral acquisition

Extended spectral acquisition

Map image acquisition

Every Tuesday, my group and I attended a Pressure Sensor Fabrication Workshop where we learned about

the processes of pressure sensor fabrication and photolithography.

Every Wednesday, our entire group attended seminars at FIU or webinars from North Carolina State

University. These presentations were highly informative and enlightening as they were conducted

by some of the most prestigious engineers and scientists in their fields. These include Dr. Nezih Pala and Dr. Sakhrat Khizroev from FIU and Dr. M. McCord, Dr. James Lebeau and Dr. Ewan Pritchard from North

Carolina State University.

Every Friday, our entire group attended a Curriculum Workshop facilitated by Ms. Kerlyn Prada and formed

a Professional Learning Community. Educational protocols we were exposed to include:

Fears and Hopes Protocol

Four “A”s Text Protocol

Tuning Protocol

Microlabs Protocol

Warm Wheel Protocol

Charrette Protocol

Change in Practice Protocol

Free Form Mapping

Zones of Comfort, Risk, and Danger

During the six weeks we spent at FIU, we took advantage of the numerous opportunities for

collaboration and, speaking for myself, I know that I will be able to effectively incorporate what I learned

into my classroom curriculum and enhance the learning experiences of my students. Thank you

Stephanie and Dr. Milani for providing such an inspirational and worthwhile experience.