Science and Engineering of Graphene Oxide

Functional and synthesis diversity of graphene oxide (GO) has led to various fundamental and applied scientific explorations. GO can be viewed as an in-plane, hybrid 2D lattice consisting of sp2 and sp3 carbon regions. Engineering the type and distribution of sp3 regions can tune the physical properties of resultant GO. This article reviews the development in the field of GO since the 19th century, with a thorough discussion on its status after the discovery of graphene in last decade. Detailed structure, optical properties, electrochemical behavior, and its viability for biological applications are discussed from both a scientific and technological perspective and a future outlook for GO research is presented.