Surfactant-Mediated Growth and Patterning of Atomically Thin Transition Metal Dichalcogenides

Xufan Li, Ethan Kahn, Ethan Kahn, Gugang Chen, Xiahan Sang, Jincheng Lei, Donata Passarello, Akinola D. Oyedele, Dante Zakhidov, Kai Wen Chen, Yu Xun Chen, Shang Hsien Hsieh, Kazunori Fujisawa, Raymond R. Unocic, Kai Xiao, Alberto Salleo, Michael F. Toney, Chia Hao Chen, Efthimios Kaxiras, Mauricio TerronesBoris I. Yakobson, Avetik R. Harutyunyan

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

35 Scopus citations

Abstract

The role of additives in facilitating the growth of conventional semiconducting thin films is well-established. Apparently, their presence is also decisive in the growth of two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), yet their role remains ambiguous. In this work, we show that the use of sodium bromide enables synthesis of TMD monolayers via a surfactant-mediated growth mechanism, without introducing liquefaction of metal oxide precursors. We discovered that sodium ions provided by sodium bromide chemically passivate edges of growing molybdenum disulfide crystals, relaxing in-plane strains to suppress 3D islanding and promote monolayer growth. To exploit this growth model, molybdenum disulfide monolayers were directly grown into desired patterns using predeposited sodium bromide as a removable template. The surfactant-mediated growth not only extends the families of metal oxide precursors but also offers a way for lithography-free patterning of TMD monolayers on various surfaces to facilitate fabrication of atomically thin electronic devices.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)6570-6581
Number of pages12
JournalACS Nano
Volume14
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 23 2020

Funding

We thank Jordan Lerach and Sebastian Van Nuffel for assisting TOF-SIMS experiments, Tianyi Zhang and Ana Laura Elias for TEM measurements, Brian Tackett for XPS measurement, Gamini Sumanasekera for providing SiO/Si substrates with various thickness of oxide layers, and Jesse Sun-Woo Ko and Maria Lukatskaya for assisting with some of SEM measurements. STEM characterization and FET fabrication/measurement were conducted at the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, which is a DOE Office of Science User Facility. The research using Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Light Source at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is supported by U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences under Contract No. DE-AC02-76SF00515. E.K. is funded by the Center for Integrated Quantum Materials, NSF Grant No. DMR-1231319, and by ARO MURI Award No. W911NF-14-0247. D.Z. is supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship under Grant No. DGE-1656518. AES. and conventional XPS measurements were performed at the Stanford Nano Shared Facilities (SNSF), supported by the National Science Foundation under Award No. ECCS-1542152. 2 ++

FundersFunder number
Center for Integrated Quantum Materials
National Science FoundationDGE-1656518, DMR-1231319, ECCS-1542152
U.S. Department of Energy
Army Research OfficeW911NF-14-0247
Office of Science
Basic Energy SciencesDE-AC02-76SF00515

    Keywords

    • MoS
    • edge passivation
    • lithography-free patterning
    • strain
    • surfactant

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