Evidence of the role of contacts on the observed electron-hole asymmetry in graphene

We perform electrical transport measurements in graphene with several sample geometries. In particular, we design “invasive” probes crossing the whole graphene sheet as well as “external” probes connected through graphene side arms. The four-probe conductance measured between external probes varies linearly with charge density and is symmetric between electron and hole types of carriers. In contrast measurements with invasive probes give a strong electron-hole asymmetry and a sublinear conductance as a function of density. By comparing various geometries and types of contact metal, we show that these two observations are due to transport properties of the metal/graphene interface. The asymmetry originates from the pinning of the charge density below the metal, which thereby forms a p-n or p-p junction, depending on the polarity of the carriers in the bulk graphene sheet. Our results also explain part of the sublinearity observed in conductance as a function of density in a large number of experiments on graphene, which has generally been attributed to short-range scattering only.