Non-invasive digital etching of van der Waals semiconductors.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 35383178.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-022-29447-6 and PMC identifier 8983769.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
The capability to finely tailor material thickness with simultaneous atomic precision and non-invasivity would be useful for constructing quantum platforms and post-Moore microelectronics. However, it remains challenging to attain synchronized controls over tailoring selectivity and precision. Here we report a protocol that allows for non-invasive and atomically digital etching of van der Waals transition-metal dichalcogenides through selective alloying via low-temperature thermal diffusion and subsequent wet etching. The mechanism of selective alloying between sacrifice metal atoms and defective or pristine dichalcogenides is analyzed with high-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy. Also, the non-invasive nature and atomic level precision of our etching technique are corroborated by consistent spectral, crystallographic, and electrical characterization measurements. The low-temperature charge mobility of as-etched MoS2 reaches up to 1200 cm2 V-1s-1, comparable to that of exfoliated pristine counterparts. The entire protocol represents a highly precise and non-invasive tailoring route for material manipulation.