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Semiconductors

Seeing single-layer semiconductor properties in bulk

Nature Synthesis (2023)Cite this article

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An intercalation strategy has been developed to produce bulk-monolayer MoS2 which retains single-layer semiconductor properties.

Reduction to lower dimensions impacts the properties of materials, with dramatic characteristic variations depending on the number of dimensions involved. The control of physical dimensions in materials provides a robust and powerful strategy for tailoring the unique properties of materials. A recent example of this is the layered molybdenum disulfide (MoS2). MoS2, in its three-dimensional bulk form, is an indirect semiconductor with a bandgap of 1.2 eV. However, when reduced to a two-dimensional (2D) monolayer, quantum confinement effects cause the materials to transition into a direct semiconductor with a bandgap of 1.8 eV (ref. 1). Moreover, 2D monolayer (ML)-MoS2 breaks inversion symmetry, resulting in a strong coupling of spin and valley degrees of freedom, making it promising in valleytronics, non-linear optics, and piezoelectricity2,3. However, the ultrathin structure of MoS2 is a double-edged sword for its optoelectronic application. While it enables certain unique properties, it weakens the optical absorption cross-section and emission intensity, and makes the material delicate and susceptible to environmental changes4. Therefore, strategies are needed to incorporate the benefits of the monolayer unit into its bulk counterpart.

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Fig. 1: Electrochemical molecular intercalation for the synthesis of BM-MoS2.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Joint Laboratory for Intelligent Micro-Nano Optoelectronic Technology, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Kowloon, China

    Kenan Zhang & Zhengtang Luo

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  1. Kenan Zhang
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  2. Zhengtang Luo
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Correspondence to Zhengtang Luo.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Zhang, K., Luo, Z. Seeing single-layer semiconductor properties in bulk. Nat. Synth (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44160-023-00388-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44160-023-00388-2

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