Confined growth of armchair MoS<sub>2</sub> nanotubes at the 1-nm limit.

Nakanishi, Yusuke; Senga, Ryosuke; Furusawa, Shinpei; Sato, Yuta; Liu, Zheng; Tanaka, Takumi; Gao, Yanlin; Maruyama, Mina et al. · Science · 2026

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Atomically thin nanotubes of semiconducting transition metal dichalcogenides offer a platform for exploring quantum phenomena at the one-dimensional limit and for realizing nanoscale transistor channels. However, conventional syntheses produce only large-diameter (>10 nm), multiwalled tubes with uncontrolled chiralities. We report the synthesis of single-walled molybdenum disulfide (MoS<sub>2</sub>) nanotubes with diameters approaching 1 nm, achieved through spatially confined reactions inside boron nitride (BN) nanotubes. The confined geometry stabilizes otherwise inaccessible, highly strained MoS<sub>2</sub> nanotubes, yielding structurally well-defined armchair configurations. Their bandgaps shrink systematically with decreasing diameter, in accordance with long-standing theoretical predictions. The insulating BN sheath simultaneously provides an intrinsic gate-all-around architecture, thereby promising access to truly nanoscale transistor channels.