The electrochemical double layer at the graphene/aqueous electrolyte interface: what we can learn from simulations, experiments, and theory

Abstract

The physical-chemistry of the graphene/aqueous–electrolyte interface underpins the operational conditions of a wide range of devices. Despite its importance, this interface is poorly understood due to the challenges faced in its experimental characterization and the difficulty of developing models that encompass its full physics. In this review we first summarize the classical theory of the electrochemical double layer, with the aim of defining a universal nomenclature to link experiments and simulations within a single unified framework. We then present the most recent experimental, theoretical and computational data and discuss how they compare with standard theory. The review ends with some remarks about how to compare simulations and experimental data and how this technology might evolve in the future.