The overall objectives for the research are to further develop a commercially scalable technique to produce 2D materials in a low-temperature process suitable for state-of-the-art flexible electronic devices. 2D materials are molecularly thin materials that come with a variety of electronic properties. Their molecularly thin nature means that they can be stacked in a variety of ways to produce materials with nearly limitless possibilities of electrical properties. Low-temperature, commercially scalable growth methods are vitally needed to enable state-of-the-art flexible/wearable electronics based on 2D materials. Recently, we developed one of the only commercially scalable techniques to grow these materials at low enough temperatures to coat flexible substrates, such as rubbers and polymer substrates. Amorphous pre-cursor films are magnetron sputtered at room temperature and subsequently treated with laser light to convert the amorphous materials to crystalline 2D materials. The work will involve studying this laser treatment process, the resulting materials, reducing the process to practice, and fabricating flexible devices.

 

References

Senyuk B; et al: Three-Dimensional Patterning of Solid Microstructures through Laser Reduction of Colloidal Graphene Oxide in Liquid-Crystalline Dispersions. Nature Communications: 7157, 2015

Castellanos-Gomez A; et al: Laser-Thinning of MoS2: On Demand Generation of a Single-Layer Semiconductor. Nano Letters 12: 3187–3192, 2012

Muratore C; et al: Continuous Ultra-Thin MoS2 Films Grown by Low-Temperature Physical Vapor Deposition. Applied Physics Letters 104: 261604, 2014

 

Keywords:

Laser processing; Flexible electronics; 2D materials; Graphene; MoS2; Soft matter; Liquid crystals; Stretchable electronics;

Citizenship:  Open to U.S. citizens

Level:  Open to Postdoctoral and Senior applicants