  A novel nanomaterial which consists of graphene sheets decorated with
silsesquioxane molecoles has been developed. Indeed, aminopropyl-silsesquioxane
(POSS-NH2) has been employed to functionalize graphene oxide sheets (GOs). The
surface grafting of GOs with POSS-NH2 has been established by infrared
spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, while the morphology has
been investigated by field emission electron microscopy as well as by atomic
force microscopy. The combination of the amino functionalized POSS molecules
with GO sheets produces a hybrid silicon/graphite-based nanomaterial, named
GRAPOSS, for which the electrical conductivity of reduced GO was restored, thus
allowing promising exploitations in several fields such as polymer
nanocomposites.
