Low-energy electron reflectivity from graphene

Low-energy reflectivity of electrons from single- and multilayer graphene is examined both theoretically and experimentally. A series of minima in the reflectivity over the energy range of 0--8 eV are found, with the number of minima depending on the number of graphene layers. Using first-principles computations, it is demonstrated that a freestanding n-layer graphene slab produces n-1 reflectivity minima. This same result is also found experimentally for graphene supported on SiO₂. For graphene bonded onto other substrates it is argued that a similar series of reflectivity minima is expected, although in certain cases an additional minimum occurs, at an energy that depends on the graphene-substrate separation and the effective potential in that space.