One-dimensional van der Waals quantum materials

The advent of graphene and other two-dimensional van der Waals materials, with their unique electrical, optical, and thermal properties has resulted in tremendous progress for fundamental science. Recent developments suggest that taking one more step down in dimensionality — from mono-layer atomic sheets to individual atomic chains — can bring exciting prospects in fundamental science and practical applications. The atomic chain is the ultimate limit in material downscaling, a frontier for establishing an entirely new field of one-dimensional quantum materials. Here, we review this emerging area of one-dimensional van der Waals quantum materials and anticipate its future directions. We focus on quantum effects associated with the charge-density-wave condensate, strongly-correlated phenomena, topological phases, and other unique physical characteristics, which are attainable specifically in van der Waals materials of lower dimensionality. Possibilities for engineering the properties of quasi-one-dimensional materials via compositional changes, vacancies, and defects, as well as their potential applications in composites are also discussed.     

Mixed-dimensional van der Waals heterojunction-enhanced Raman scattering

Van der Waals heterojunctions(vdWHs)provide an excellent material system for the research of heterojunction-enhanced Raman scattering(HERS)due to their complexity and diversity.However,the traditional two-dimensional vdWHs are not conducive to the full utilization of near-field light due to the limitation of single dimension.Herein,we fabricate T-shaped mixed-dimensional SnSe₂/ReS₂ vdWHs via chemical vapor deposition and wetting transfer method,and demonstrate that the mixed-dimensional vdWHs can be used as ultrasensitive HERS chips based on the effective photo-induced charge transfer.Besides,the radiative energy transfer effect enhanced by near-field light further magnifies the HERS signals,improving the detection limit of rhodamine 6G(R6G)to femtomolar level.Furthermore,we demonstrate that the ultrasensitive screening of crystal violet in multicomponent solutions adsorbed on SnSe₂/ReS₂ vdWHs can be achieved by adjusting the laser wavelength,which has not been achieved by noble metal materials.This work provides new insights into the mixed-dimensional vdWHs and demonstrates the great application potential of T-shaped heterojunctions.     

Designing van der Waals Forces between Nanocolloids

van der Waals (VDW) dispersion forces are often calculated between colloidal particles by combining the Dzyaloshinskii-Lifshitz-Pitaevskii (DLP) theory with the Derjaguin approximation; however, several limitations prevent using this method for nanocolloids. Here we use the Axilrod-Teller-Muto 3-body formulation to predict VDW forces between spherical, cubic, and core-shell nanoparticles in a vacuum. Results suggest heuristics for "designing" nanocolloids to have improved stability.     

Thermal transport behavior of van der Waals solids and liquids in the neighborhood of the solid-liquid phase transition

The thermal conductivity, , is one of the few transport coefficients which shows a relatively small change at the solid-liquid phase transition, and hence it is a property that can be used in comparing dynamic properties of both ordered and disordered systems. Although the discontinuity in can be accounted for largely by the difference in density, , of solid and liquid at the phase transition, its volume dependence is examined more closely. The thermal diffusivity, which is known to dominate the dynamic structure factor of liquid argon, has been determined around the phase transition also; the sound velocity has been considered in addition. The results are discussed and a comparison is made with these properties in solid and liquid benzene and cyclohexane.Paper presented at the Ninth Symposium on Thermophysical Properties, June 24–27, 1985, Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A.     

Measuring van der Waals and electrostatic forces for an atomic force microscope probe contacting with metal surfaces

A contact force spectrometry technique was used to measure the van der Waals and electrostatic forces acting on platinum-coated silicon probes contacting with metal films on silicon substrates. It is shown that the results of such measurements can be used for determining the geometric characteristics of probes and the Hamaker constant of contacting materials. The experimental data well agree with the theoretical values.     

Multifunctional van der Waals Broken‐Gap Heterojunction

The finite energy band‐offset that appears between band structures of employed materials in a broken‐gap heterojunction exhibits several interesting phenomena. Here, by employing a black phosphorus (BP)/rhenium disulfide (ReS₂) heterojunction, the tunability of the BP work function (Φ _BP) with variation in flake thickness is exploited in order to demonstrate that a BP‐based broken‐gap heterojunction can manifest diverse current‐transport characteristics such as gate tunable rectifying p–n junction diodes, Esaki diodes, backward‐rectifying diodes, and nonrectifying devices as a consequence of diverse band‐bending at the heterojunction. Diversity in band‐bending near heterojunction is attributed to change in the Fermi level difference (Δ) between BP and ReS₂ sides as a consequence of Φ _BP modulation. No change in the current transport characteristics in several devices with fixed Δ also provides further evidence that current‐transport is substantially impacted by band‐bending at the heterojunction. Optoelectronic experiments on the Esaki diode and the p–n junction diode provide experimental evidence of band‐bending diversity. Additionally, the p⁺–n–p junction comprising BP (38 nm)/ReS₂/BP(5.8 nm) demonstrates multifunctionality of binary and ternary inverters as well as exhibiting the behavior of a bipolar junction transistor with common‐emitter current gain up to 50.     

Opto-valleytronics in the 2D van der Waals heterostructure

The development of information processing devices with minimum carbon emission is crucial in this information age. One of the approaches to tackle this challenge is by using valleys (local extremum points in the momentum space) to encode the information instead of charges. The valley information in some material such as monolayer transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) can be controlled by using circularly polarized light. This opens a new field called opto-valleytronics. In this article, we first review the valley physics in monolayer TMD and two-dimensional (2D) heterostructure composed of monolayer TMD and other materials. Such 2D heterostructure has been shown to exhibit interesting phenomena such as interlayer exciton, magnetic proximity effect, and spin-orbit proximity effect, which is beneficial for opto-valleytronics application. We then review some of the optical valley control methods that have been used in the monolayer TMD and the 2D heterostructure. Finally, a summary and outlook of the 2D heterostructure opto-valleytronics are given.

     

Strain-Sensitive Magnetization Reversal of a van der Waals Magnet

By virtue of the layered structure, van der Waals (vdW) magnets are sensitive to the lattice deformation controlled by the external strain, providing an ideal platform to explore the one-step magnetization reversal that is still conceptual in conventional magnets due to the limited strain-tuning range of the coercive field. In this study, a uniaxial tensile strain is applied to thin flakes of the vdW magnet Fe₃GeTe₂ (FGT), and a dramatic increase of the coercive field (H_c) by more than 150% with an applied strain of 0.32% is observed. Moreover, the change of the transition temperatures between the different magnetic phases under strain is investigated, and the phase diagram of FGT in the strain–temperature plane is obtained. Comparing the phase diagram with theoretical results, the strain-tunable magnetism is attributed to the sensitive change of magnetic anisotropy energy. Remarkably, strain allows an ultrasensitive magnetization reversal to be achieved, which may promote the development of novel straintronic device applications.     

Integrating spin-based technologies with atomically controlled van der Waals interfaces

As the feature sizes of electronic devices continue to shrink, new technologies—in particular spintronics and derived interfacial architectures—become increasingly pivotal. In this context, two-dimensional van der Waals materials and their interfaces are particularly attractive, relying on their ultimate atomic thicknesses and exceptional spin-related properties. This review provides a critical evaluation on the state-of-the-art of van der Waals interfaces and projected technological applications in spintronics, highlights major challenges and a viable solution—an all-in-situ growth and characterization strategy, and finally identifies several emerging spin-based technologies that might significantly benefit from the versatile van der Waals interfaces enabled by the strategy.     

Multioperation-Mode Light-Emitting Field-Effect Transistors Based on van der Waals Heterostructure

2D semiconductors have shown great potential for application to electrically tunable optoelectronics. Despite the strong excitonic photoluminescence (PL) of monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), their efficient electroluminescence (EL) has not been achieved due to the low efficiency of charge injection and electron–hole recombination. Here, multioperation-mode light-emitting field-effect transistors (LEFETs) consisting of a monolayer WSe₂ channel and graphene contacts coupled with two top gates for selective and balanced injection of charge carriers are demonstrated. Visibly observable EL is achieved with the high external quantum efficiency of ≈6% at room temperature due to efficient recombination of injected electrons and holes in a confined 2D channel. Further, electrical tunability of both the channel and contacts enables multioperation modes, such as antiambipolar, depletion,and unipolar regions, which can be utilized for polarity-tunable field-effect transistors and photodetectors. The work exhibits great potential for use in 2D semiconductor LEFETs for novel optoelectronics capable of high efficiency, multifunctions, and heterointegration.     

Bridging the van der Waals Interface for Advanced Optoelectronic Devices

Van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures exhibit excellent optoelectronic properties and novel functionalities. However, their applicability is impeded due to the common issue of the tunneling barrier, which arises from the vdW gap; this significantly increases the injection resistance of the photoexcited carriers. Herein, a generic strategy is demonstrated to eliminate the vdW gap in a broad class of heterostructures. It is observed that the vdW gap in the interface is bridged via strong orbital hybridization between the interface dangling bonds of nonlayered chalcogenide semiconductors and the artificially induced vacancies of transition metal chalcogenides (TMDCs). The photoresponse times of bridged PbS/ReS₂, PbS/MoSe₂, and PbS/MoS₂ are ≈30, 51, and 43 µs, respectively. The photon-triggered on/off ratio of the bridged PbS/MoS₂, ZnSe/MoS₂, and ZnTe/MoS₂ heterostructures exceed 10⁶, 10⁵, and 10⁵, respectively. These are several orders of magnitude higher than common vdW heterostructures. The findings obtained in this study present a versatile strategy for overcoming the performance limitations of vdW heterostructures.     

Uncovering the Conduction Behavior of van der Waals Ambipolar Semiconductors

A long‐standing puzzle about van der Waals semiconductors (vdWS) is regarding the origin(s) of the conduction behavior they exhibit. Of particular interest are those with ambipolar conduction, which may provide an alternative choice for practical applications when considering the difficulties of doping the ultrathin bodies of vdWS. Here, the conduction behavior of ambipolar vdWS is analytically and theoretically studied. Using numerical simulation, it is shown that ambipolar vdWS can be fully captured by a Schottky‐barrier FET model. Based on this, it is found that the widely observed conduction polarity transition while changing the body thickness mainly comes from the tuning of band alignment at the metal/vdWS interfaces. This transition can be suppressed/inversed by introducing an inert hBN layer between the vdWS and the substrate. Through first‐principles calculations, it is demonstrated that metal/vdWS/substrate interactions play a crucial role in tuning the Schottky‐barrier heights, which finally determines the conduction behavior that ambipolar vdWS exhibit.     

Gate-Tunable van der Waals Photodiodes with an Ultrahigh Peak-to-Valley Current Ratio

Photodetectors and imagers based on 2D layered materials are currently subject to a rapidly expanding application space, with an increasing demand for cost-effective and lightweight devices. However, the underlying carrier transport across the 2D homo- or heterojunction channel driven by the external electric field, like a gate or drain bias, is still unclear. Here, a visible-near infrared photodetector based on van der Waals stacked molybdenum telluride (MoTe₂) and black phosphorus (BP) is reported. The type-I and type-II band alignment can be tuned by the gate and drain voltage combined showing a dynamic modulation of the conduction polarity and negative differential transconductance. The heterojunction devices show a good photoresponse to light illumination ranging from 520–2000 nm. The built-in potential at the MoTe₂/BP interface can efficiently separate photoexcited electron–hole pairs with a high responsivity of 290 mA W⁻¹, an external quantum efficiency of 70%, and a fast photoresponse of 78 µs under zero bias.     

Mapping van der Waals forces with frequency modulation dynamic force microscopy

Nanometre-size gold clusters supported on MoS(2)(0001) are investigated by means of ultrahigh-vacuum frequency modulation dynamic force microscopy. Topography and frequency shift images are simultaneously obtained using the average tunnelling current to regulate the tip-substrate distance. Two families of clusters are observed, giving different frequency shift images. While the topographic and frequency shift profiles have similar shapes on small clusters (size [Formula: see text]?nm), they are quite different near the top of large clusters (size [Formula: see text]?nm): the topographic profile is rounded, but the frequency shift profile exhibits rather steep edges and a depression near the centre of the island. It is demonstrated that these differences result from the finite range of van der Waals forces. On small islands, the frequency shift is dominated by the interaction of the tip with the substrate. On large islands, it is dominated by the interaction with the island. The particular observed shape results from the geometry of the island. These interpretations are comforted by analytical and numerical calculations. In particular, the characteristic shape of the frequency shift profiles on large islands can be reproduced by introducing realistic parameters and considering only the contribution of van?der?Waals forces.     

Electro-Optic Upconversion in van der Waals Heterostructures via Nonequilibrium Photocarrier Tunneling

Ultrafast interlayer charge transfer is one of the most distinct features of van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures. Its dynamics competes with carrier thermalization such that the energy of nonthermalized photocarriers may be harnessed by band engineering. In this study, nonthermalized photocarrier energy is harnessed to achieve near-infrared (NIR) to visible light upconversion in a metal–insulator–semiconductor (MIS) vdW heterostructure tunnel diode consisting of few-layer graphene (FLG), hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), and monolayer tungsten disulfide (WS₂). Photoexcitation of the electrically biased heterostructure with 1.58 eV NIR laser in the linear absorption regime generates emission from the ground exciton state of WS₂, which corresponds to upconversion by ≈370 meV. The upconversion is realized by electrically assisted interlayer transfer of nonthermalized photoexcited holes from FLG to WS₂, followed by formation and radiative recombination of excitons in WS₂. The photocarrier transfer rate can be described by Fowler–Nordheim tunneling mechanism and is electrically tunable by two orders of magnitude by tuning voltage bias applied to the device. This study highlights the prospects for realizing novel electro-optic upconversion devices by exploiting electrically tunable nonthermalized photocarrier relaxation dynamics in vdW heterostructures.     

3D Mesoporous van der Waals Heterostructures for Trifunctional Energy Electrocatalysis

The emergence of van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures of 2D materials has opened new avenues for fundamental scientific research and technological applications. However, the current concepts and strategies of material engineering lack feasibilities to comprehensively regulate the as‐obtained extrinsic physicochemical characters together with intrinsic properties and activities for optimal performances. A 3D mesoporous vdW heterostructure of graphene and nitrogen‐doped MoS₂ via a two‐step sequential chemical vapor deposition method is constructed. Such strategy is demonstrated to offer an all‐round engineering of 2D materials including the morphology, edge, defect, interface, and electronic structure, thereby leading to robustly modified properties and greatly enhanced electrochemical activities. The hydrogen evolution is substantially accelerated on MoS₂, while the oxygen reduction and evolution are significantly improved on graphene. This work provides a powerful overall engineering strategy of 2D materials for electrocatalysis, which is also enlightening for other nanomaterials and energy‐related applications.     

Edge induced band bending in van der Waals heterojunctions: A first principle study

Nano Research - The dangling bond free nature of two-dimensional (2D) material surface/interface makes van der Waals (vdW) heterostructure attractive for novel electronic and optoelectronic...     

A New Opportunity for 2D van der Waals Heterostructures: Making Steep-Slope Transistors

The use of a foreign metallic cold source (CS) has recently been proposed as a promising approach toward the steep-slope field-effect-transistor (FET). In addition to the selection of source material with desired density of states–energy relation (D(E)), engineering the source:channel interface for gate-tunable channel-barrier is crucial to CS-FETs. However, conventional metal:semiconductor (MS) interfaces generally suffer from strong Fermi-level pinning due to the inevitable chemical disorder and defect-induced gap states, precluding the gate tunability of the barriers. By comprehensive materials and device modeling at the atomic scale, it is reported that 2D van der Waals (vdW) MS interfaces, with their atomic sharpness and cleanness, can be considered as general ingredients for CS-FETs. As test cases, InSe-based n-type FETs are studied. It is found that graphene can be spontaneously p-type doped along with slightly opened bandgap around the Dirac-point by interfacing with InSe, resulting in superexponentially decaying hot carrier density with increasing n-type channel-barrier. Moreover, the D(E) relations suggest that 2D transition-metal dichalcogenides and 2D transition-metal carbides are a rich library of CS materials. Graphene, Cd₃C₂, T-VTe₂, H-VTe₂, and H-TaTe₂ CSs lead to subthreshold swing below 60 mV dec⁻¹. This work broadens the application potentials of 2D vdW MS heterostructures and serves as a springboard for more studies on low-power electronics based on 2D materials.     

van der Waals epitaxy of InAs nanowires vertically aligned on single-layer graphene

Semiconductor nanowire arrays integrated vertically on graphene films offer significant advantages for many sophisticated device applications. We report on van der Waals (VDW) epitaxy of InAs nanowires vertically aligned on graphene substrates using metal-organic chemical vapor deposition. The strong correlation between the growth direction of InAs nanowires and surface roughness of graphene substrates was investigated using various graphene films with different numbers of stacked layers. Notably, vertically well-aligned InAs nanowire arrays were obtained easily on single-layer graphene substrates with sufficiently strong VDW attraction. This study presents a considerable advance toward the VDW heteroepitaxy of inorganic nanostructures on chemical vapor-deposited large-area graphenes. More importantly, this work demonstrates the thinnest epitaxial substrate material that yields vertical nanowire arrays by the VDW epitaxy method.