Rhenium disulfide (ReS2) and diselenide (ReSe2), the group 7 transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), are known to have a layered atomic structure showing an in-plane motif of diamond-shaped-chains (DS-chains) arranged in parallel. Using a combination of transmission electron microscopy and transport measurements, we demonstrate here the direct correlation of electron transport anisotropy in single-layered ReS2 with the atomic orientation of the DS-chains, as also supported by our density functional theory calculations. We further show that the direction of conducting channels in ReS2 and ReSe2 can be controlled by electron beam irradiation at elevated temperatures and follows the strain induced to the sample. Furthermore, high chalcogen deficiency can induce a structural transformation to a nonstoichiometric phase, which is again strongly direction-dependent. This tunable in-plane transport behavior opens up great avenues for creating nanoelectronic circuits in 2D materials.

Performance of 2D photodetectors is often predominated by charge traps that offer an effective photogating effect. The device features an ultrahigh gain and responsivity, but at the cost of a retarded temporal response due to the nature of long-lived trap states. In this work, we devise a gain mechanism that originates from massive charge puddles formed in the type-II 2D lateral heterostructures. This concept is demonstrated using graphene-contacted WS2 photodetectors embedded with WSe2 nanodots. Upon light illumination, photoexcited carriers are separated by the built-in field at the WSe2/WS2 heterojunctions (HJs), with holes trapped in the WSe2 nanodots. The resulting WSe2 hole puddles provide a photoconductive gain, as electrons are recirculating during the lifetime of holes that remain trapped in the puddles. The WSe2/WS2 HJ photodetectors exhibit a responsivity of 3 × 102 A/W with a gain of 7 × 102 electrons per photon. Meanwhile, the zero-gate response time is reduced by 5 orders of magnitude as compared to the prior reports for the graphene-contacted pristine WS2 monolayer and WS2/MoS2 heterobilayer photodetectors due to the ultrafast intralayer excitonic dynamics in the WSe2/WS2 HJs.

One of the primary limitations of previously reported two-dimensional (2D) photodetectors is a low frequency response (≪ 1 Hz) for sensitive devices with gain. Yet, little efforts have been devoted to improve the temporal response of photodetectors while maintaining high gain and responsivity. Here, we demonstrate a gain of 6.3 × 10 3 electrons per photon and a responsivity of 2.6 × 10 3 A/W while simultaneously exhibiting an ultrafast response time of 40−65 μs in a hybrid photodetector that consists of graphene-WS 2 -graphene junctions covered with indium (In) adatoms atop. The resultant responsivity is 6 orders of magnitude higher than that of conventional photodetectors comprising solely of a Au-WS 2 -Au junction. The photogain is provided mainly by the adsorbed In adatoms, from which photogenerated electrons can be transferred to the WS 2 channel, while holes remain trapped in In adatoms, leading to a photogating effect as electrons are recirculating during the residence of holes in In adatoms. At a gate voltage near the Dirac point of graphene, a detectivity of D* = 2.2 × 10 12 Jones and an ON/OFF ratio of 10 4 are achieved. The enhanced performance of the device can be attributed partly to the transparent graphene/WS 2 contact and partly to the strong capacitive coupling of the In adatoms with the WS 2 channel, which enables ultrafast carrier dynamics.

The most pressing barrier for the development of advanced electronics based on two-dimensional (2D) layered semiconductors stems from the lack of site-selective synthesis of complementary n- and p-channels with low contact resistance. Here, we report an in-plane epitaxial route for the growth of interlaced 2D semiconductor monolayers using chemical vapor deposition with a gas-confined scheme, in which patterned graphene (Gr) serves as a guiding template for site-selective growth of Gr–WS2–Gr and Gr–WSe2–Gr heterostructures. The Gr/2D semiconductor interface exhibits a transparent contact with a nearly ideal pinning factor of 0.95 for the n-channel WS2 and 0.92 for the p-channel WSe2. The effective depinning of the Fermi level gives an ultralow contact resistance of 0.75 and 1.20 kΩ·μm for WS2 and WSe2, respectively. Integrated logic circuits including inverter, NAND gate, static random access memory, and five-stage ring oscillator are constructed using the complementary Gr–WS2–Gr–WSe2–Gr heterojunctions as a fundamental building block, featuring the prominent performance metrics of high operation frequency (>0.2 GHz), low-power consumption, large noise margins, and high operational stability. The technology presented here provides a speculative look at the electronic circuitry built on atomic-scale semiconductors in the near future.

Contact engineering has been the central issue in the context of high-performance field-effect transistors (FETs) made of atomic thin transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). Conventional metal contacts on TMDs have been made on top via a lithography process, forming a top-bonded contact scheme with an appreciable contact barrier. To provide a more efficient pathway for charge injection, an end-bonded contact scheme has been proposed, in which covalent bonds are formed between the contact metal and channel edges. Yet, little efforts have been made to realize this contact configuration. Here, we bridge this gap and demonstrate seeded growth of end-bonded contact with different TMDs by means of chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Monolayer WSe2 FETs with a CVD-grown channel and end contacts exhibit improved performance metrics, including an on-current density of 30 μA/μm, a hole mobility of 90 cm2/V·s, and a subthreshold swing of 94 mV/dec, an order of magnitude superior than those of top-contact FET counterparts that share the same channel material. A fundamental NOT logic gate constructed using top-gated and end-bonded WSe2 and MoS2 FETs is also demonstrated. Calculations using density functional theory indicate that the superior device performance stems mainly from the stronger metal–TMD hybridization and substantial gap states in the end-contact configuration.