We successfully synthesize high-luminescence and submillimeter-scale
monolayers of molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) employing a combinational
phase precursor via a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) approach. First,
sodium nitrate catalyst is demonstrated to assist the reaction equilibrium
of a solid precursor CVD process, leading to an increased density
and size of MoS2 monolayer flakes (∼120 μm).
However, the monolayers’ photoluminescence intensity is significantly
reduced due to the presence of excess residues. A suspension solution-based
precursor is also tested using the optimized temperature, pressure,
and catalyst from the solid precursor case, and it is found to also
give a high density of uniform triangles with an average size of ∼80
μm. Finally, combining both precursor phases (combinational
phase precursor) yields the largest monolayer flakes with an average
size of ∼200 μm and the highest luminescence, with photoluminescence
intensities being 1 order of magnitude higher than that of a standard
mechanical exfoliated monolayer.