Low Exciton-Phonon Coupling, High Charge Carrier Mobilities, and Multiexciton Properties in Two-Dimensional Lead, Silver, Cadmium, and Copper Chalcogenide Nanostructures.

Abstract

The development of two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials has revealed novel physical properties, like high carrier mobilities and the tunable coupling of charge carriers with phonons, which can enable wide-ranging applications in optoelectronic and thermoelectric devices. While mechanical exfoliation of graphene and some transition metal dichalcogenides (e.g., MoS2, WSe2) has enabled their fabrication as 2D semiconductors and integration into devices, lack of similar syntheses for other 2D semiconductor materials has hindered further progress. Here, we report measurements of fundamental charge carrier interactions and optoelectronic properties of 2D nanomaterials made from two-monolayers-thick PbX, CdX, Cu2X, and Ag2X (X = S, Se) using colloidal syntheses. Extremely low coupling of charge carriers with phonons (2-6-fold lower than bulk and other low-dimensional semiconductors), high carrier mobilities (0.2-1.2 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1), without dielectric screening), observation of infrared surface plasmons in ultrathin 2D semiconductor nanostructures, strong quantum-confinement, and other multiexcitonic properties (different phonon coupling and photon-to-charge collection efficiencies for band-edge and higher-energy excitons) can pave the way for efficient solution-processed devices made from these 2D nanostructured semiconductors.