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Writing monolithic integrated circuits on a two-dimensional semiconductor with a scanning light probe

Nature Electronics volume 1, pages 512–517 (2018)Cite this article

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Abstract

The development of complex electronics based on two-dimensional (2D) materials will require the integration of a large number of 2D devices into circuits. However, a practical method of assembling such devices into integrated circuits remains elusive. Here we show that a scanning visible light probe can be used to directly write electrical circuitry onto the 2D semiconductor molybdenum ditelluride (2H-MoTe2). Laser light illumination over metal patterns deposited onto 2D channels of 2H-MoTe2 can convert the channels from an n-type semiconductor to a p-type semiconductor, by creating adatom–vacancy clusters in the host lattice. With this process, diffusive doping profiles can be controlled at the submicrometre scale and doping concentrations can be tuned, allowing the channel sheet resistance to be varied over four orders of magnitudes. Our doping method can be used to assemble both n- and p-doped channels within the same atomic plane, which allows us to fabricate 2D device arrays of n–p–n (p–n–p) bipolar junction transistor amplifiers and radial p–n photovoltaic cells.

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Fig. 1: Direct writing of electrical circuitry on a single semiconductor layer by scanning a visible laser.
Fig. 2: Microscopic origin of p-type doping in 2H-MoTe2 upon light illumination.
Fig. 3: Programmable local p-type doping by light illumination.
Fig. 4: Direct writing of integrated bipolar junction transistor arrays.
Fig. 5: Circularly patterned coplanar MoTe2 p–n junction arrays as photovoltaic cells.

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The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Korea under Project Code IBS-R014-G1-2018-A1. S.C. and H.C. were supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) (NRF-2015R1A2A1A10052520 and NRF-2016R1A4A1012929). S.-Y.C. was supported by the Global Frontier Hybrid Interface Materials (GFHIM) of the NRF of Korea (2013M3A6B1078872). K.S. acknowledges the Fundamental Research Program of the Korean Institute of Materials Science.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Artificial Low Dimensional Electronic Systems, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Pohang, Korea

    Seung-Young Seo, Jaehyun Park, Jewook Park, Sangwan Sim, Han Woong Yeom & Moon-Ho Jo

  2. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, Korea

    Seung-Young Seo, Jaehyun Park, Si-Young Choi & Moon-Ho Jo

  3. Department of Materials Modeling and Characterization, Korea Institute of Materials Science, Changwon, Korea

    Kyung Song

  4. School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea

    Soonyoung Cha & Hyunyong Choi

  5. Department of Physics, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, Korea

    Han Woong Yeom & Moon-Ho Jo

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  1. Seung-Young Seo
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Contributions

M.-H.J. and S.-Y.S. conceived and designed the project. S.-Y.S. fabricated the devices and performed light-induced doping experiments, as well as electrical characterizations. Jaehyun P. and Jewook P. performed the STM measurements and analysed the data. H.W.Y. provided the STM set-ups. K.S. and S.-Y.C. acquired the STEM images and analysed the data. S.C., S.S. and H.C. carried out the photocurrent measurements. M.-H.J., S.-Y.S. and Jewook P. co-wrote the paper. All authors discussed the results and commented on the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Moon-Ho Jo.

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Supplementary Figures 1–16 and Supplementary Table 1

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Seo, SY., Park, J., Park, J. et al. Writing monolithic integrated circuits on a two-dimensional semiconductor with a scanning light probe. Nat Electron 1, 512–517 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41928-018-0129-6

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