All in the graphene family – A recommended nomenclature for two-dimensional carbon materials

Interest in two-dimensional, sheet-like or flake-like carbon forms has expanded beyond monolayer graphene to include related materials with significant variations in layer number, lateral dimension, rotational faulting, and chemical modification. Describing this family of “graphene materials” has been causing confusion in the Carbon journal and in the scientific literature as a whole. The international editorial team for Carbon believes that the time has come for a discussion on a rational naming system for two-dimensional carbon forms. We propose here a first nomenclature for two-dimensional carbons that could guide authors toward a more precise description of their subject materials, and could allow the field to move forward with a higher degree of common understanding.