Strain engineering of 2D semiconductors and graphene: from strain fields to band-structure tuning and photonic applications

Peng, Zhiwei; Chen, Xiaolin; Fan, Yulong; Srolovitz, David J.; Lei, Dangyuan

doi:10.1038/s41377-020-00421-5

Cited by 323 publications

(211 citation statements)

References 151 publications

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“…Although MoS 2 has mechanical flexibility and strength that facilitates its strain engineering, the material exhibits nonuniform strain distribution. This happens because of the large number of atoms involved under strain which needs further study [138,139]. The non-equilibrium in MoS 2 structure is related to the temperature and the heating rate applied during synthesizing [140], which calls for new synthesizing methods.…”

Section: Challengesmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review on MoS2 Properties, Synthesis, Sensing Applications and Challenges

et al. 2021

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Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) is one of the compounds discussed nowadays due to its outstanding properties that allowed its usage in different applications. Its band gap and its distinctive structure make it a promising material to substitute graphene and other semiconductor devices. It has different applications in electronics especially sensors like optical sensors, biosensors, electrochemical biosensors that play an important role in the detection of various diseases’ like cancer and Alzheimer. It has a wide range of energy applications in batteries, solar cells, microwave, and Terahertz applications. It is a promising material on a nanoscale level, with favorable characteristics in spintronics and magnetoresistance. In this review, we will discuss MoS2 properties, structure and synthesis techniques with a focus on its applications and future challenges.

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Section: Challengesmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review on MoS2 Properties, Synthesis, Sensing Applications and Challenges

et al. 2021

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“…TMDs are remarkably sensitive to strain resulting in a large tunability of their energy landscape. In particular, strain was shown to significantly shift exciton resonances 17 , 18 . As a result, strain-induced energy gradients allow us to control and manipulate exciton propagation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dark exciton anti-funneling in atomically thin semiconductors

et al. 2021

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Transport of charge carriers is at the heart of current nanoelectronics. In conventional materials, electronic transport can be controlled by applying electric fields. Atomically thin semiconductors, however, are governed by excitons, which are neutral electron-hole pairs and as such cannot be controlled by electrical fields. Recently, strain engineering has been introduced to manipulate exciton propagation. Strain-induced energy gradients give rise to exciton funneling up to a micrometer range. Here, we combine spatiotemporal photoluminescence measurements with microscopic theory to track the way of excitons in time, space and energy. We find that excitons surprisingly move away from high-strain regions. This anti-funneling behavior can be ascribed to dark excitons which possess an opposite strain-induced energy variation compared to bright excitons. Our findings open new possibilities to control transport in exciton-dominated materials. Overall, our work represents a major advance in understanding exciton transport that is crucial for technological applications of atomically thin materials.

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“…Applying mechanical deformations has become a powerful approach to modify the vibrational, optical, and electronic properties of 2D materials. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] In principle, 2D materials can sustain unprecedented strains without breaking. [8][9][10] Moreover, their band structures are rather strain-sensitive, [11][12][13][14] making them very suitable for strain engineering applications.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Strongly Anisotropic Strain‐Tunability of Excitons in Exfoliated ZrSe₃

Sánchez-Santolino

Puebla

et al. 2021

Advanced Materials

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be adjusted by the end-user at will. Strain engineering in conventional 3D materials, in contrast, typically relies on forcing the epitaxial growth of a material onto a substrate with a given lattice parameter mismatch, providing a fixed strain that cannot be adjusted after growth. Among the different strategies to strain engineer 2D materials, the application of uniaxial strain through bending flexible substrates with a bending jig apparatus is one of the most popular approaches. [1,11,12,[15][16][17][18] This method presents some issues when applied to 2D materials with in-plane anisotropic properties. Indeed, the effect of uniaxial strain along different crystal orientations is expected to modify the properties of these anisotropic 2Ds differently. Despite the recent interest on these families of anisotropic 2D materials, [19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] the number of reported research works focused on studying the effect of strain along different crystal directions is still very scarce and primarily focused on the investigation of strain tunable Raman modes in black phosphorus, PdSe 2 , or tellurium. [27][28][29][30][31] The group IV-V transition metal trichalcogenides (TMTCs) are a less-explored family of materials with quasi-1D electrical and optical properties stemming from a reduced in-plane structural symmetry. [24,[32][33][34] These materials have a general formula of MX 3 being M a transition metal atomThe effect of uniaxial strain on the band structure of ZrSe 3 , a semiconducting material with a marked in-plane structural anisotropy, is studied. By using a modified three-point bending test apparatus, thin ZrSe 3 flakes are subjected to uniaxial strain along different crystalline orientations monitoring the effect of strain on their optical properties through micro-reflectance spectroscopy. The obtained spectra show excitonic features that blueshift upon uniaxial tension. This shift is strongly dependent on the direction along which the strain is being applied. When the flakes are strained along the b-axis, the exciton peak shifts at ≈60-95 meV % −1 , while along the a-axis, the shift only reaches ≈0-15 meV % −1 . Ab initio calculations are conducted to study the influence of uniaxial strain, applied along different crystal directions, on the band structure and reflectance spectra of ZrSe 3 , exhibiting a remarkable agreement with the experimental results.

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Strain engineering of 2D semiconductors and graphene: from strain fields to band-structure tuning and photonic applications

Cited by 323 publications

References 151 publications

A Review on MoS2 Properties, Synthesis, Sensing Applications and Challenges

A Review on MoS2 Properties, Synthesis, Sensing Applications and Challenges

Dark exciton anti-funneling in atomically thin semiconductors

Strongly Anisotropic Strain‐Tunability of Excitons in Exfoliated ZrSe₃

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Strain engineering of 2D semiconductors and graphene: from strain fields to band-structure tuning and photonic applications

Cited by 323 publications

References 151 publications

A Review on MoS2 Properties, Synthesis, Sensing Applications and Challenges

A Review on MoS2 Properties, Synthesis, Sensing Applications and Challenges

Dark exciton anti-funneling in atomically thin semiconductors

Strongly Anisotropic Strain‐Tunability of Excitons in Exfoliated ZrSe3

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Strongly Anisotropic Strain‐Tunability of Excitons in Exfoliated ZrSe₃