Waterproof molecular monolayers stabilize 2D materials

Two-dimensional van der Waals materials have rich and unique functional properties, but many are susceptible to corrosion under ambient conditions. Here we show that linear alkylamines n-Cm H2m+1NH₂, with m = 4 through 11, are highly effective in protecting the optoelectronic properties of these mat...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 2019-10, Vol.116 (42), p.20844-20849
Main Authors: Su, Cong, Yin, Zongyou, Yan, Qing-Bo, Wang, Zegao, Lin, Hongtao, Sun, Lei, Xu, Wenshuo, Yamada, Tetsuya, Ji, Xiang, Zettsu, Nobuyuki, Teshima, Katsuya, Warner, Jamie H., Dincă, Mircea, Hu, Juejun, Dong, Mingdong, Su, Gang, Kong, Jing, Li, Ju
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alkylamines
anticorrosion
Drying
MATERIALS SCIENCE
molecular monolayer stabilizer
Monolayers
multilayer 2D materials
Optoelectronics
Organic acids
Organic solvents
Phosphorus
Physical Sciences
Protective coatings
Theoretical analysis
Transition metal compounds
Two dimensional materials
Water chemistry
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Two-dimensional van der Waals materials have rich and unique functional properties, but many are susceptible to corrosion under ambient conditions. Here we show that linear alkylamines n-Cm H2m+1NH₂, with m = 4 through 11, are highly effective in protecting the optoelectronic properties of these materials, such as black phosphorus (BP) and transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs: WS₂, 1T′-MoTe₂, WTe₂, WSe₂, TaS₂, and NbSe₂). As a representative example, n-hexylamine (m = 6) can be applied in the form of thin molecular monolayers on BP flakes with less than 2-nm thickness and can prolong BP’s lifetime from a few hours to several weeks and even months in ambient environments. Characterizations combined with our theoretical analysis show that the thin monolayers selectively sift out water molecules, forming a drying layer to achieve the passivation of the protected 2D materials. The monolayer coating is also stable in air, H₂ annealing, and organic solvents, but can be removed by certain organic acids.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.1909500116