Chapter 22 - Molecular Beam Epitaxy of Transition Metal Dichalcogenides

Abstract

Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are a class of layered materials of significant interest due to their scalability and thickness-dependent electrical and optical properties. The growth of these materials by molecular beam epitaxy has enabled high purity films and novel heterostructures. The weak van der Waals bonding between successive layers of these TMDs enables the growth of these heterostructures with minimal concern for lattice mismatch and the subsequent strain common in epitaxial growth. This field of “van der Waals epitaxy” has grown substantially in recent years primarily focusing on understanding the growth kinetics and materials physics of TMDs. In this chapter, we will discuss the fundamental nature of these materials, their nucleation and growth, optimal growth conditions, and the ability to form complex heterostructures with other layered materials with no misfit dislocations despite significant lattice mismatch.