Workshop 1: Metrology, Characterization and Standardization

Graphene and related materials (GRMs) science is maturing into technologies for real world applications and as such is leading us into previously uncharted territory in nanotechnology. Commercial adoption of a material requires a level of consistency and quality that can only be assured by internationally agreed upon standards of measurement. The research community also benefits from standard measurement practices and quality in the GRM supply systems, as it facilitates inter-laboratory comparisons of results. This workshop strives to bring together the international stakeholders in GRMs measurement science and standardization to build consensus on best measurement practices to assure consistency and quality in this field. These standards are prerequisite to develop innovative GRM-enabled products, fabricating them at a defined quality level guaranteed by statistical process control.

Solving safety issues associated with nanomaterials is crucially required to translate any future development of new nanotechnologies into action, from industrial applications to health care approaches. Graphene and related materials (GRMs), due to small size and unique physico-chemical properties, are not devoid of possible risks on health or environment, and cannot be excluded from these two domains of investigation. The workshop will be focused on the latest advances in determining and resolving safety and toxicity issues of GRMs as well as their latest developments in “Nanomedicine” such as tissue engineering, bio-sensing, brain electrodes, drug delivery, just to cite a few. The workshop aims to discuss bio applications facing the requirements set within the context of industrial research.

This workshop aims at presenting the state of the art in advanced modelling of structurally and chemically modified forms of graphene and related materials (GRMs). Emphasis will be given to simulations of GRM devices, including transistors, chemical sensors, NEMS, just to cite a few. From novel theoretical concepts to ultimate developments in first-principles calculations, an overall picture of recent achievements/breakthroughs and research prospective will be targeted, including electronic, transport, optical, thermal and mechanical properties.

The industrial use of graphene and related materials (GRMs) will require large scale and cost-effective production methods, while providing a balance between ease of fabrication and final material quality, defined as on-demand tailored properties according to the final use. GRMs can be produced on large and cost-effective scale by top-down (exfoliation from bulk) or bottom up (atom by atom growth) techniques. The workshop will present the latest advances in both approaches to meet GRMs specifications required by the targeted applications and in the development of scalable strategies to build 2D material heterostructures. 
The focus will be both on the CVD growth and the optimization of reliable transfer techniques on different target substrates (flexible and non-flexible) enabling high-end applications in (opto)-electronics, Hall sensors, as well as the development of scalable liquid exfoliation synthesis of GRMs. In this context, topics of interest will be the functionalization and the optimizing GRM properties as well as the formulation and characterization of inks suitable for printings and coatings for different applications (composites, flexible (opto)-electronics, sensors, and photonics).

This workshop aims to share the progress in the research and technology of graphene and related materials (GRMs) around the worldwide initiatives. A journey through the “graphene world” will give a flavour of global efforts, and foster opportunities for international networking and collaboration. All major initiatives and forefront research programs will be outlined, including European excellence centres and Graphene flagship, research in Brazil, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, USA…

A series of targeted talks given by Invited speakers will be followed by oral contributions selected from the Graphene 2016 submissions on all workshops mentioned above.