Abstract
A defect-controlled approach for the nucleation and epitaxial growth of WSe 2 on hBN is demonstrated. The WSe 2 domains exhibit a preferred orientation of over 95%, leading to a reduced density of inversion domain boundaries (IDBs) upon coalescence. First-principles calculations and experimental studies as a function of growth conditions and substrate pretreatment confirm that WSe 2 nucleation density and orientation are controlled by the hBN surface defect density rather than thermodynamic factors. Detailed transmission electron microscopy analysis provides support for the role of single-atom vacancies on the hBN surface that trap W atoms and break surface symmetry leading to a reduced formation energy for one orientation of WSe 2 domains. Through careful control of nucleation and extended lateral growth time, fully coalesced WSe 2 monolayer films on hBN were achieved. Low-temperature photoluminescence (PL) measurements and transport measurements of back-gated field-effect transistor devices fabricated on WSe 2 /hBN films show improved optical and electrical properties compared to films grown on sapphire under similar conditions. Our results reveal an important nucleation mechanism for the epitaxial growth of van der Waals heterostructures and demonstrate hBN as a superior substrate for single-crystal transition-metal dichalcogenide (TMD) films, resulting in a reduced density of IDBs and improved properties. The results motivate further efforts focused on the development of single crystal hBN substrates and epilayers for synthesis of wafer-scale single crystal TMD films.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 3341-3352 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | ACS nano |
| Volume | 13 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Mar 26 2019 |
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All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Materials Science(all)
- Engineering(all)
- Physics and Astronomy(all)
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Defect-Controlled Nucleation and Orientation of WSe 2 on hBN : A Route to Single-Crystal Epitaxial Monolayers. / Zhang, Xiaotian; Zhang, Fu; Wang, Yuanxi; Schulman, Daniel S.; Zhang, Tianyi; Bansal, Anushka; Alem, Nasim; Das, Saptarshi; Crespi, Vincent Henry; Terrones Maldonado, Mauricio; Redwing, Joan Marie.
In: ACS nano, Vol. 13, No. 3, 26.03.2019, p. 3341-3352.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
TY - JOUR
T1 - Defect-Controlled Nucleation and Orientation of WSe 2 on hBN
T2 - A Route to Single-Crystal Epitaxial Monolayers
AU - Zhang, Xiaotian
AU - Zhang, Fu
AU - Wang, Yuanxi
AU - Schulman, Daniel S.
AU - Zhang, Tianyi
AU - Bansal, Anushka
AU - Alem, Nasim
AU - Das, Saptarshi
AU - Crespi, Vincent Henry
AU - Terrones Maldonado, Mauricio
AU - Redwing, Joan Marie
PY - 2019/3/26
Y1 - 2019/3/26
N2 - A defect-controlled approach for the nucleation and epitaxial growth of WSe 2 on hBN is demonstrated. The WSe 2 domains exhibit a preferred orientation of over 95%, leading to a reduced density of inversion domain boundaries (IDBs) upon coalescence. First-principles calculations and experimental studies as a function of growth conditions and substrate pretreatment confirm that WSe 2 nucleation density and orientation are controlled by the hBN surface defect density rather than thermodynamic factors. Detailed transmission electron microscopy analysis provides support for the role of single-atom vacancies on the hBN surface that trap W atoms and break surface symmetry leading to a reduced formation energy for one orientation of WSe 2 domains. Through careful control of nucleation and extended lateral growth time, fully coalesced WSe 2 monolayer films on hBN were achieved. Low-temperature photoluminescence (PL) measurements and transport measurements of back-gated field-effect transistor devices fabricated on WSe 2 /hBN films show improved optical and electrical properties compared to films grown on sapphire under similar conditions. Our results reveal an important nucleation mechanism for the epitaxial growth of van der Waals heterostructures and demonstrate hBN as a superior substrate for single-crystal transition-metal dichalcogenide (TMD) films, resulting in a reduced density of IDBs and improved properties. The results motivate further efforts focused on the development of single crystal hBN substrates and epilayers for synthesis of wafer-scale single crystal TMD films.
AB - A defect-controlled approach for the nucleation and epitaxial growth of WSe 2 on hBN is demonstrated. The WSe 2 domains exhibit a preferred orientation of over 95%, leading to a reduced density of inversion domain boundaries (IDBs) upon coalescence. First-principles calculations and experimental studies as a function of growth conditions and substrate pretreatment confirm that WSe 2 nucleation density and orientation are controlled by the hBN surface defect density rather than thermodynamic factors. Detailed transmission electron microscopy analysis provides support for the role of single-atom vacancies on the hBN surface that trap W atoms and break surface symmetry leading to a reduced formation energy for one orientation of WSe 2 domains. Through careful control of nucleation and extended lateral growth time, fully coalesced WSe 2 monolayer films on hBN were achieved. Low-temperature photoluminescence (PL) measurements and transport measurements of back-gated field-effect transistor devices fabricated on WSe 2 /hBN films show improved optical and electrical properties compared to films grown on sapphire under similar conditions. Our results reveal an important nucleation mechanism for the epitaxial growth of van der Waals heterostructures and demonstrate hBN as a superior substrate for single-crystal transition-metal dichalcogenide (TMD) films, resulting in a reduced density of IDBs and improved properties. The results motivate further efforts focused on the development of single crystal hBN substrates and epilayers for synthesis of wafer-scale single crystal TMD films.
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U2 - 10.1021/acsnano.8b09230
DO - 10.1021/acsnano.8b09230
M3 - Article
C2 - 30758945
AN - SCOPUS:85062360837
VL - 13
SP - 3341
EP - 3352
JO - ACS Nano
JF - ACS Nano
SN - 1936-0851
IS - 3
ER -