Researchers from the University of Vienna managed to assemble a new structure of high-quality metal silicides (nickel, cobalt and iron) coated with a graphene sheets. Using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES), the researchers studied the electronic properties of this new material.
It was found that the graphene protects the silicides against oxidation, while barely interacting with the silicides themselves. The unique properties of the graphene are widely preserved. This means that this new composite material is a good way to incorporate graphene with existing metal silicide technology, which will hopefully enable the usage of graphene in applications such as semiconductor devices, spintronics, photovoltaics and thermoelectrics.