Ion-beam-milled graphite nanoribbons as mesoscopic carbon-based polarizers

Abstract

We demonstrate optical reflectivity and Raman responses of graphite microstructures as a function of light polarization when the incident light is applied perpendicular to the material's stacking direction (c-axis). For this, we employed novel graphite nanoribbons with edges polished through ion-beam etching. In this unique configuration, a strong polarization dependence of the D, G, and 2D Raman modes is observed. At the same time, polarized reflectivity measurements demonstrate the potential of such a device as a carbon-based, on-chip polarizer. We discuss the advantages of the proposed fabrication method as opposed to the mechanical polishing of bulk crystals.