Two-dimensional metals open pathways to new science

Nanowerk  March 9, 2020
To make 2D metals key ingredients in next-generation quantum and optoelectronic devices they must be stabilized against environmental degradation and integrated into heterostructure devices at the wafer scale. A team of researchers in the US (Pennsylvania State University, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory) has demonstrated large-area, environmentally stable, single-crystal 2D gallium, indium and tin that are stabilized at the interface of epitaxial graphene and silicon carbide. The 2D metals are covalently bonded to SiC below but present a non-bonded interface to the graphene overlayer; that is, they are ‘half van der Waals’ metals with strong internal gradients in bonding character. These non-centrosymmetric 2D metals offer compelling opportunities for superconducting devices, topological phenomena and advanced optoelectronic properties…read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE