Understanding How Flat Phosphorus Grows
September 12, 2016 | A*STAREstimated reading time: 2 minutes
The door to developing superior electronic devices, such as flexible circuits, has been nudged open by A*STAR researchers’ modeling of possible methods to manufacture one of the crucial ingredients.
Phosphorene is a two-dimensional (2D) form of the element phosphorus. Despite having electronic properties superior to other 2D materials such as graphene (2D carbon) and silicene (2D silicon), phosphorene’s potential for application in high-performance devices has been limited by how difficult it is to reliably produce commercially viable quantities of it in large, thin, high-quality nanosheet form.
At present, phosphorene can only be obtained by mechanical and chemical exfoliation of black phosphorus, which is costly and produces low yields of uneven films. Other 2D materials such as graphene and molybdenum disulfide can be directly grown using chemical vapor deposition and physical vapor deposition, but no such methods exist for growing phosphorene.
The new model developed by Junfeng Gao and colleagues from the A*STAR Institute of High Performance Computing will make it possible for researchers to tackle this challenging technical problem by choosing the best process conditions for the growth of large-size, high-quality phosphorene directly on a surface.
Gao and the team tried to find the best way to grow high-quality single layers of phophorene directly on a surface by modeling the effect of different substrates on the growth of a phosphorene flake containing just 27 atoms.
“The stability of the growing nanoflake is highly sensitive to the substrate and crucial to its continued growth,” explains Gao. “If the interaction strength is too weak, the substrate causes the flake to buckle; but if the interaction is too strong, the inner bonds between the phosphorene atoms will break and an alloy may form.”
The researchers compared the effect of two different substrates on the growth of the phosphorene nanoflake — a copper substrate, commonly used for growing graphene, which bonds with the phosphorene through strong chemical processes, and a hexagonal hydrogen boron nitride (h-BN) substrate that couples with the phosphorene via weak van der Waals bonds.
The copper substrate caused the nanoflake to break, whereas the h-BN was unable to stabilize its flat structure. By boosting the strength of the bonding between the nanoflake and the h-BN substrate, their simulations showed that the 2D growth of the phosphorene was maintained. “Our work is the first attempt to explore the direct growth of phosphorene and provides guidance in the search for suitable substrates,” says Gao.
Suggested Items
MKS’ Atotech to Participate in ECTC
05/10/2024 | MKS’ AtotechAt this year’s 74th IEEE Electronic Components and Technology Conference (ECTC), MKS’ Atotech will present and demonstrate its latest product and service innovations.
The Chemical Connection: Reducing Etch System Water Usage, Part 2
05/02/2024 | Don Ball -- Column: The Chemical ConnectionIn my last column, I reviewed some relatively simple ways to reduce water usage in existing etch systems: cutting down cooling coil water flow, adding chillers to replace plant water for cooling, lowering flow rate nozzles for rinses, etc. This month, I’ll continue with more ways to control water usage in your etcher. Most of these are not easily retrofittable to existing equipment but should be given serious consideration when new equipment is contemplated. With the right combination of add-ons, it is possible to bring the amount of water used in an etch system to almost zero.
Designer’s Notebook: What Designers Need to Know About Manufacturing, Part 2
04/24/2024 | Vern Solberg -- Column: Designer's NotebookThe printed circuit board (PCB) is the primary base element for providing the interconnect platform for mounting and electrically joining electronic components. When assessing PCB design complexity, first consider the component area and board area ratio. If the surface area for the component interface is restricted, it may justify adopting multilayer or multilayer sequential buildup (SBU) PCB fabrication to enable a more efficient sub-surface circuit interconnect.
Insulectro’s 'Storekeepers' Extend Their Welcome to Technology Village at IPC APEX EXPO
04/03/2024 | InsulectroInsulectro, the largest distributor of materials for use in the manufacture of PCBs and printed electronics, welcomes attendees to its TECHNOLOGY VILLAGE during this year’s IPC APEX EXPO at the Anaheim Convention Center, April 9-11, 2024.
ENNOVI Introduces a New Flexible Circuit Production Process for Low Voltage Connectivity in EV Battery Cell Contacting Systems
04/03/2024 | PRNewswireENNOVI, a mobility electrification solutions partner, introduces a more advanced and sustainable way of producing flexible circuits for low voltage signals in electric vehicle (EV) battery cell contacting systems.