Xingxing Zhang

It is found that 2D planar defects in multilayered 2D crystals can be healed by grain boundary (GB) sliding, which works like a “wiper blade” to correct all metastable phases into thermodynamically stable phases along its trace. The driving force for GB sliding is the gain in interlayer binding energy. The study highlights the role of the often‐neglected interlayer interactions for defect repair, which have significant potential for obtaining large‐scale defect‐free 2D films.

Abstract

Understanding the mechanisms and kinetics of defect annihilations, particularly at the atomic scale, is important for the preparation of high‐quality crystals for realizing the full potential of 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) in electronics and quantum photonics. Herein, by performing in situ annealing experiments in an atomic resolution scanning transmission electron microscope, it is found that stacking faults and rotational disorders in multilayered 2D crystals can be healed by grain boundary (GB) sliding, which works like a “wiper blade” to correct all metastable phases into thermodynamically stable phases along its trace. The driving force for GB sliding is the gain in interlayer binding energy as the more stable phase grows at the expanse of the metastable ones. Density functional theory calculations show that the correction of 2D stacking faults is triggered by the ejection of Mo atoms in mirror twin boundaries, followed by the collective migrations of 1D GB. The study highlights the role of the often‐neglected interlayer interactions for defect repair in 2D materials and shows that exploiting these interactions has significant potential for obtaining large‐scale defect‐free 2D films.

As Lei Fu and Jinxin Liu discuss in article number 1800690, the exciting progress in controlled growth, etching, self‐assembly, and delivery of graphene on a liquid surface can be achieved, promoting its future industrial applications. The poem in the cover translates as “The pools in south China are suitable for gathering lotus. How dense and flourishing are the lotus leaves!” The lotus leaves floating in the pools represent graphene single crystals grown on liquid substrates.

Developing the next generation of supercapacitor technology that exceeds the working frequency of conventional aluminum electrolyte capacitors with an ultralong life is significantly important for future microelectronic applications. In article number 1807116, Cheng Yang and co‐workers report a laser triggered method for converting MoSe₂ into 1T phase for electrodes in a microsupercapacitor, showing great promise as embeddable components for system‐in‐package and system‐on‐chip applications.

Germanium disulfide (GeS₂) with a wide bandgap is introduced as an ideal candidate for polarization‐sensitive photodetection in UV region. In‐plane anisotropy of GeS₂ is demonstrated by theoretical and experimental results. In terms of in‐plane anisotropic absorption and wide bandgap in GeS₂, GeS₂‐based photodetectors show a strong polarization‐dependent photoresponse in UV region.

Abstract

Polarization‐sensitive photodetection in the UV region is highly indispensable in many military and civilian applications. UV‐polarized photodetection usually relies on the use of wide bandgap semiconductors with 1D nanostructures requiring complicated nanofabrication processes. Although the emerging anisotropic 2D semiconductors shed light on the detection of polarization with a simple device architecture, bandgaps of such reported 2D semiconductors are too small to be applied for visible–blind UV‐polarized photodetection. Here, germanium disulfide (GeS₂), the widest bandgap (>3 eV) in the family of in‐plane anisotropic 2D semiconductors explored to date, is introduced as an ideal candidate for UV‐polarized photodetection. The structural, vibrational, and optical anisotropies of GeS₂ are systematically investigated from theory to experiment. GeS₂‐based photodetectors show a strong polarization‐dependent photoresponse in the UV region. GeS₂ with a wide bandgap and high in‐plane anisotropy not only enriches the family of anisotropic 2D semiconductors but also expands the polarized photodetection from the current visible and near‐infrared to the brand‐new UV region.

Highly conducting interfaces between insulating 2D materials are demonstrated in van der Waals heterostructures fabricated by molecular‐beam epitaxy. In situ growth monitoring by reflection high energy electron diffraction confirms layer‐by‐layer fabrication of the heterostructures and the formation of abrupt interfaces. Hall effect measurements reveal that the conducting carriers are holes, and their densities are as large as 10¹⁴ cm⁻².

Abstract

Emergent properties of 2D materials attract considerable interest in condensed matter physics and materials science due to their distinguished features that are missing in their bulk counterparts. A mainstream in this research field is to broaden the scope of material to expand the horizons of the research area, while developing functional interfaces between different 2D materials is another indispensable research direction. Here, the emergence of electrical conduction at the interface between insulating 2D materials is demonstrated. A new class of van der Waals heterostructures consisting of two sets of insulating transition‐metal dichalcogenides, group‐VI WSe₂ and group‐IV TMSe₂ (TM = Zr, Hf), is developed via molecular‐beam epitaxy, and it is found that those heterostructures are highly conducting although all the constituent materials are highly insulating. The WSe₂/ZrSe₂ interface exhibits more conducting behavior than the WSe₂/HfSe₂ interface, which can be understood by considering the band alignments between constituent materials. Moreover, by increasing Se flux during heterostructure fabrication, the WSe₂/ZrSe₂ interface becomes more conducting, reaching nearly metallic behavior. Further improvement of the crystalline quality as well as exploring different material combinations are expected to lead to metallic conduction, providing a novel functionality emerging at van der Waals heterostructures.

The wide range of techniques that can be used toward the production and deposition of 2D materials' inks into space‐confined patterns or continuous thin films are discussed in this review. The importance of reaching precise control over the material's properties through a detailed understanding of their structure and interconnectivity between deposited sheets is discussed.

Abstract

2D materials (2DMs), which can be produced by exfoliating bulk crystals of layered materials, display unique optical and electrical properties, making them attractive components for a wide range of technological applications. This review describes the most recent developments in the production of high‐quality 2DMs based inks using liquid‐phase exfoliation (LPE), combined with the patterning approaches, highlighting convenient and effective methods for generating materials and films with controlled thicknesses down to the atomic scale. Different processing strategies that can be employed to deposit the produced inks as patterns and functional thin‐films are introduced, by focusing on those that can be easily translated to the industrial scale such as coating, spraying, and various printing technologies. By providing insight into the multiscale analyses of numerous physical and chemical properties of these functional films and patterns, with a specific focus on their extraordinary electronic characteristics, this review offers the readers crucial information for a profound understanding of the fundamental properties of these patterned surfaces as the millstone toward the generation of novel multifunctional devices. Finally, the challenges and opportunities associated to the 2DMs' integration into working opto‐electronic (nano)devices is discussed.

The charge density wave (CDW) of NbTe₂ is applied to generate the assembling adsorption of Sn adatoms on the surface. The CDW modulated superlattices could in turn change the surface electronic properties from semimetallic to metallic. These results demonstrate an effective approach in tuning the surface chemical properties of transition metal dichalcogenide‐based materials by theirs CDWs.

Abstract

The charge density wave (CDW) in transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) has drawn tremendous interest due to its potential for tailoring their surface electronic and chemical properties. Due to technical challenges, however, how the CDW could modulate the chemical behavior of TMDs is still not clear. Here, this work presents a study of applying the CDW of NbTe₂, with a high transition temperature above room temperature, to generate the assembling adsorption of Sn adatoms on the surface. It is shown that highly ordered monatomic Sn adatoms with a quasi‐1D structure can be obtained under regulation by the single‐axis CDW of the substrate. In addition, the CDW modulated superlattices could in turn change the surface electronic properties from semimetallic to metallic. These results demonstrate an effective approach for tuning the surface chemical properties of TMDs by their CDWs, which could be applied in exploring them for various practical applications, such as heterogeneous catalysis, epitaxial growth of low‐dimensional materials, and future nanoelectronics.