Layer thinning and etching of mechanically exfoliated MoS2 nanosheets by thermal annealing in air

Jumiati Wu, Hai Li, Zongyou Yin, Hong Li, Juqing Liu, Xiehong Cao, Qing Zhang, Hua Zhang*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

258 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A simple thermal annealing method for layer thinning and etching of mechanically exfoliated MoS2 nanosheets in air is reported. Using this method, single-layer (1L) MoS2 nanosheets are achieved after the thinning of MoS2 nanosheets from double-layer (2L) to quadri-layer (4L) at 330 °C. The as-prepared 1L MoS2 nanosheet shows comparable optical and electrical properties with the mechanically exfoliated, pristine one. In addition, for the first time, the MoS2 mesh with high-density of triangular pits is also fabricated at 330 °C, which might arise from the anisotropic etching of the active MoS2 edge sites. As a result of thermal annealing in air, the thinning of MoS2 nanosheet is possible due to its oxidation to form MoO3. Importantly, the MoO3 fragments on the top of thinned MoS2 layer induces the hole injection, resulting in the p-type channel in fabricated field-effect transistors. A simple and low-cost MoS2 layer thinning method is developed. Double-layer (2L) to quadri-layer (4L) MoS2 nanosheets have been successfully thinned to single-layer (1L) MoS2 by thermal annealing in air, which show comparable properties with the pristine 1L MoS 2 nanosheet. MoS2 mesh with high-density of triangular pits by thermal annealing in air is reported for the first time. The existence of MoO3 fragments on MoS2 nanosheet surface induces the hole injection, resulting in p-type MoS2 FET channel.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)3314-3319
Number of pages6
JournalSmall
Volume9
Issue number19
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 11 Oct 2013
Externally publishedYes

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