Molybdenum disulfide (MoS 2) is one of the most important two-dimensional materials after graphene. Monolayer MoS 2 has a direct bandgap (1.9 eV) and is potentially suitable for post-silicon electronics. Among all atomically thin semiconductors, MoS 2 's synthesis techniques are more developed. Here, we review the recent developments in the synthesis of hexagonal MoS 2 , where they are categorized into top-down and bottom-up approaches. Micromechanical exfoliation is convenient for beginners and basic research. Liquid phase exfoliation and solutions for chemical processes are cheap and suitable for large-scale production; yielding materials mostly in powders with different shapes, sizes and layer numbers. MoS 2 films on a substrate targeting high-end nanoelectronic applications can be produced by chemical vapor deposition, compatible with the semiconductor industry. Usually, metal catalysts are unnecessary. Unlike graphene, the transfer of atomic layers is omitted. We especially emphasize the recent advances in metalorganic chemical vapor deposition and atomic layer deposition, where gaseous precursors are used. These processes grow MoS 2 with the smallest building-blocks, naturally promising higher quality and controllability. Most likely, this will be an important direction in the field. Nevertheless, today none of those methods reproducibly produces MoS 2 with competitive quality. There is a long way to go for MoS 2 in real-life electronic device applications.
Graphene nanowalls (GNWs) are wall-like graphene nanosheets that are oriented vertically on a substrate. GNWs have a unique structure and special optoelectronic properties, which enables their use in photodetectors. In this paper, we use plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition to directly grow GNWs onto the surface of an n-type lightly doped Si substrate and to optimize the quality of the GNWs by adjusting the growth time and temperature. Furthermore, after the GNWs are lithographically patterned, we use a GNW-Si Schottky structure to develop photodetector arrays which are capable of detecting light from the visible to infrared light spectral range. Throughout the process, GNWs are directly synthesized on a Si substrate without using a catalyst or a transfer step. The process is simple and efficient. Under laser illumination at a wavelength of 792 nm, the highest on/off ratio at zero bias is approximately 105, and the specific detectivity is 7.85 × 106 cm Hz1/2/W. Under a reverse bias of 4 V, the measured responsivity of the detector reaches 1 A/W at room temperature. The device can also produce a light response in the near-infrared band. Upon laser illumination at a wavelength of 1550 nm, the detector shows a responsivity of 12 mA/W at room temperature.
A technique for the in situ growth of patterned graphene by CVD has been achieved directly on insulating substrates at 800 °C. The graphene growth is catalyzed by a Ni−Cu alloy sacrificial layer, which integrates many advantages such as being lithography-free, and almost wrinkle-free, with a high repeatability and rapid growth. The etching method of the metal sacrificial layer is the core of this technique, and the mechanism is analyzed. Graphene has been found to play an important role in accelerating etching speeds. The Ni−Cu alloy exhibits a high catalytic activity, and thus, high-quality graphene can be obtained at a lower temperature. Moreover, the Ni−Cu layer accommodates a limited amount of carbon atoms, which ensures a high monolayer ratio of the graphene. The carbon solid solubility of the alloy is calculated theoretically and used to explain the experimental findings. The method is compatible with the current semiconductor process and is conducive to the industrialization of graphene devices.
The rapid development of neuromorphic computing has stimulated extensive research interest in artificial synapses. Optoelectronic artificial synapses using laser beams as stimulus signals have the advantages of broadband, fast response, and low crosstalk. However, the optoelectronic synapses usually exhibit short memory duration due to the low lifetime of the photo-generated carriers. It greatly limits the mimicking of human perceptual learning, which is a common phenomenon in sensory interactions with the environment and practices of specific sensory tasks. Herein, a heterostructure optoelectronic synapse based on graphene nanowalls and CsPbBr3 quantum dots was fabricated. The graphene/CsPbBr3 heterojunction and the natural middle energy band in graphene nanowalls extend the carrier lifetime. Therefore, a long half-life period of photocurrent decay - 35.59 s has been achieved. Moreover, the long-term optoelectronic response can be controlled by the adjustment of numbers, powers, wavelengths, and frequencies of the laser pulses. Next, an artificial neural network consisting of a 28 × 28 synaptic array was established. It can be used to mimic a typical characteristic of human perceptual learning that the ability of sensory systems is enhanced through a learning experience. The learning behavior of image recognition can be tuned based on the photocurrent response control. The accuracy of image recognition keeps above 80% even under a low-frequency learning process. We also verify that less time is required to regain the lost sensory ability that has been previously learned. This approach paves the way toward high-performance intelligent devices with controllable learning of visual perception.
Chemical vapor deposited graphene suffers from two problems: transfer from metal catalysts to insulators, and photoresist induced degradation during patterning. Both result in macroscopic and microscopic damages such as holes, tears, doping, and contamination, translated into property and yield dropping. We attempt to solve the problems simultaneously. A nickel thin film is evaporated on SiO as a sacrificial catalyst, on which surface graphene is grown. A polymer (PMMA) support is spin-coated on the graphene. During the Ni wet etching process, the etchant can permeate the polymer, making the etching efficient. The PMMA/graphene layer is fixed on the substrate by controlling the surface morphology of Ni film during the graphene growth. After etching, the graphene naturally adheres to the insulating substrate. By using this method, transfer-free, lithography-free and fast growth of graphene realized. The whole experiment has good repeatability and controllability. Compared with graphene transfer between substrates, here, no mechanical manipulation is required, leading to minimal damage. Due to the presence of Ni, the graphene quality is intrinsically better than catalyst-free growth. The Ni thickness and growth temperature are controlled to limit the number of layers of graphene. The technology can be extended to grow other two-dimensional materials with other catalysts.
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