High electrical conductivity of Cu wires cladded by Gr/Cu coating

Graphene/copper (Gr/Cu) coating-cladded Cu wires with high electrical conductivity and low surface roughness were successfully prepared from copper sulfate pentahydrate (CuSO4·5 H2O) containing Gr ranging from 0 to 2.0 g/L by direct current electrodeposition. The Gr defect density, surface morphology, surface roughness and electrical conductivity of Gr/Cu coating-cladded Cu wires were investigated. The results revealed that with the increasing Gr concentration the surface roughness and electrical conductivity of Gr/Cu coating-cladded Cu wires were enhanced simultaneously. When the Gr concentration was 1.2 g/L, Gr/Cu coating-cladded Cu wires possessed the lowest surface roughness of 4.241 μm and the highest electrical conductivity of 105.5% IACS. Compared with the counterpart without Gr, the surface roughness was reduced by 10.7%, and the electrical conductivity was increased by 5.4%, respectively. The models were developed to evaluate the surface roughness and electrical conductivity of Gr/Cu coating-cladded Cu wires.