Abhay Shivayogimath: A universal approach for the synthesis of two-dimensional compounds by chemical vapour deposition

DTU Physics  Technical University of Denmark Kgs. Lyngby 2800, Denmark  Only a few of the vast range of potential two-dimensional materials (2D) have been isolated or synthesized to date. Typically, 2D materials are discovered by mechanically exfoliating naturally occurring bulk crystals to produce atomically thin layers, after which a material-specific vapour synthesis method must be developed to grow interesting candidates in a scalable manner. Here we show a general approach for synthesising thin layers of two-dimensional binary compounds [1]. We apply the method to obtain high quality, epitaxial MoS2 films, and extend the principle to the synthesis of a wide range of other materials - both well-known and never-before isolated - including transition metal sulphides, selenides, tellurides, and nitrides. This approach greatly simplifies the synthesis of currently known materials, and provides a general framework for synthesising both predicted and unexpected new 2D compounds. [1] A. Shivayogimath, et al., Nat. Commun. 10, 2957 (2019) Abhay is currently a postdoctoral researcher in the group of Dr. Timothy J. Booth at DTU Physics, Technical University of Denmark. His research interests include large-scale synthesis, transfer, and applications of graphene and 2D material films. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree (first class honours) in bio-chemical engineering in 2012. He obtained his M.S. in Nanophysics (magna cum laude) from KU Leuven and Chalmers University in 2014. He obtained his PhD at DTU Nanotech in 2018 on the growth of 2D materials by chemical vapour deposition. He has co-authored 11 articles and 2 patents.