Ion Migration Studies in Exfoliated 2D Molybdenum Oxide via Ionic Liquid Gating for Neuromorphic Device Applications.

The formation of an electric double layer in ionic liquid (IL) can electrostatically induce charge carriers and/or intercalate ions in and out of the lattice which can trigger a large change of the electronic, optical, and magnetic properties of materials and even modify the crystal structure. We present a systematic study of ionic liquid gating of exfoliated 2D molybdenum trioxide (MoO) devices and correlate the resultant electrical properties to the electrochemical doping via ion migration during the IL biasing process. A nearly 9 orders of magnitude modulation of the MoO conductivity is obtained for the two types of ionic liquids that are investigated.

Evolutionary selection growth of two-dimensional materials on polycrystalline substrates.

There is a demand for the manufacture of two-dimensional (2D) materials with high-quality single crystals of large size. Usually, epitaxial growth is considered the method of choice in preparing single-crystalline thin films, but it requires single-crystal substrates for deposition. Here we present a different approach and report the synthesis of single-crystal-like monolayer graphene films on polycrystalline substrates.

Role of Electrical Double Layer Structure in Ionic Liquid Gated Devices.

Ionic liquid gating of transition metal oxides has enabled new states (magnetic, electronic, metal-insulator), providing fundamental insights into the physics of strongly correlated oxides. However, despite much research activity, little is known about the correlation of the structure of the liquids in contact with the transition metal oxide surface, its evolution with the applied electric potential, and its correlation with the measured electronic properties of the oxide. Here, we investigate the structure of an ionic liquid at a semiconducting oxide interface during the operation of a thin film transistor where the electrical double layer gates the device using experiment and theory.

PdSe: Pentagonal Two-Dimensional Layers with High Air Stability for Electronics.

Most studied two-dimensional (2D) materials exhibit isotropic behavior due to high lattice symmetry; however, lower-symmetry 2D materials such as phosphorene and other elemental 2D materials exhibit very interesting anisotropic properties. In this work, we report the atomic structure, electronic properties, and vibrational modes of few-layered PdSe exfoliated from bulk crystals, a pentagonal 2D layered noble transition metal dichalcogenide with a puckered morphology that is air-stable. Micro-absorption optical spectroscopy and first-principles calculations reveal a wide band gap variation in this material from 0 (bulk) to 1.

High performance top-gated multilayer WSe field effect transistors.

In this paper, high performance top-gated WSe field effect transistor (FET) devices are demonstrated via a two-step remote plasma assisted ALD process. High-quality, low-leakage aluminum oxide (AlO) gate dielectric layers are deposited onto the WSe channel using a remote plasma assisted ALD process with an ultrathin (∼1 nm) titanium buffer layer. The first few nanometers (∼2 nm) of the AlO dielectric film is deposited at relatively low temperature (i.

3D Nanoprinting via laser-assisted electron beam induced deposition: growth kinetics, enhanced purity, and electrical resistivity.

We investigate the growth, purity, grain structure/morphology, and electrical resistivity of 3D platinum nanowires synthesized via electron beam induced deposition with and without an in situ pulsed laser assist process which photothermally couples to the growing Pt-C deposits. Notably, we demonstrate: 1) higher platinum concentration and a coalescence of the otherwise Pt-C nanogranular material, 2) a slight enhancement in the deposit resolution and 3) a 100-fold improvement in the conductivity of suspended nanowires grown with the in situ photothermal assist process, while retaining a high degree of shape fidelity.

Focused helium-ion beam irradiation effects on electrical transport properties of few-layer WSe2: enabling nanoscale direct write homo-junctions.

Atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are currently receiving significant attention due to their promising opto-electronic properties. Tuning optical and electrical properties of mono and few-layer TMDs, such as tungsten diselenide (WSe2), by controlling the defects, is an intriguing opportunity to synthesize next generation two dimensional material opto-electronic devices. Here, we report the effects of focused helium ion beam irradiation on the structural, optical and electrical properties of few-layer WSe2, via high resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and electrical transport measurements.

Plasmonic effects of au/ag bimetallic multispiked nanoparticles for photovoltaic applications.

In recent years, there has been considerable interest in the use of plasmons, that is, free electron oscillations in conductors, to boost the performance of both organic and inorganic thin film solar cells. This has been driven by the possibility of employing thin active layers in solar cells in order to reduce materials costs, and is enabled by significant advances in fabrication technology. The ability of surface plasmons in metallic nanostructures to guide and confine light in the nanometer scale has opened up new design possibilities for solar cell devices.

Ultrathin, flexible organic-inorganic hybrid solar cells based on silicon nanowires and PEDOT:PSS.

Recently, free-standing, ultrathin, single-crystal silicon (c-Si) membranes have attracted considerable attention as a suitable material for low-cost, mechanically flexible electronics. In this paper, we report a promising ultrathin, flexible, hybrid solar cell based on silicon nanowire (SiNW) arrays and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS). The free-standing, ultrathin c-Si membranes of different thicknesses were produced by KOH etching of double-side-polished silicon wafers for various etching times.

High efficiency hybrid silicon nanopillar-polymer solar cells.

Recently, inorganic/organic hybrid solar cells have been considered as a viable alternative for low-cost photovoltaic devices because the Schottky junction between inorganic and organic materials can be formed employing low temperature processing methods. We present an efficient hybrid solar cell based on highly ordered silicon nanopillars (SiNPs) and poly(3,4-ethylene-dioxythiophene):polystyrenesulfonate (PEDOT:PSS). The proposed device is formed by spin coating the organic polymer PEDOT:PSS on a SiNP array fabricated using metal assisted electroless chemical etching process.