Scalable low-temperature synthesis of two-dimensional materials beyond graphene

Abstract

Two dimensional (2D) materials are of interest for a wide range of applications, including low-power electronics, catalysis, optoelectronics, and quantum information. Scalable synthesis is the foundation of a ‘Lab-to-Fab’ transition, where significant advances in material scalability over the last few years is made possible via common industrially adopted thin film deposition techniques. To date, elevated temperatures and crystalline substrates are the major enablers of electronic-grade 2D materials, but these parameters may not always meet state-of-the-art manufacturing requirements due to the high thermal budget and necessity to transfer the 2D films to secondary substrates. Hence, large-scale, high-quality low-temperature (<500 °C) synthesis methods are being pursued by a variety of research groups. This review highlights low-temperature synthesis and properties of 2D materials beyond graphene such as transition metal dichalcogenides, with emphasis on correlating large-scale vapor, liquid, and solid source growth methods with structural, morphological, compositional, and transport properties. In addition to reviewing traditional thin-film synthesis techniques, we discuss solution-based processes compatible with spin or spray coating, summarize typical techniques for evaluating material quality, and present grand challenges faced at this kinetically limited growth regime.