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Yang Y, Xu K, Holtzman LN, Yang K, Watanabe K, Taniguchi T, Hone J, Barmak K, Rosenberger MR. Atomic Defect Quantification by Lateral Force Microscopy. ACS NANO 2024; 18:6887-6895. [PMID: 38386278 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.3c07405] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
Atomic defects in two-dimensional (2D) materials impact electronic and optoelectronic properties, such as doping and single photon emission. An understanding of defect-property relationships is essential for optimizing material performance. However, progress in understanding these critical relationships is hindered by a lack of straightforward approaches for accurate, precise, and reliable defect quantification on the nanoscale, especially for insulating materials. Here, we demonstrate that lateral force microscopy (LFM), a mechanical technique, can observe atomic defects in semiconducting and insulating 2D materials under ambient conditions. We first improve the sensitivity of LFM through consideration of cantilever mechanics. With the improved sensitivity, we use LFM to locate atomic-scale point defects on the surface of bulk MoSe2. By directly comparing LFM and conductive atomic force microscopy (CAFM) measurements on bulk MoSe2, we demonstrate that point defects observed with LFM are atomic defects in the crystal. As a mechanical technique, LFM does not require a conductive pathway, which allows defect characterization on insulating materials, such as hexagonal boron nitride (hBN). We demonstrate the ability to observe intrinsic defects in hBN and defects introduced by annealing. Our demonstration of LFM as a mechanical defect characterization technique applicable to both conductive and insulating 2D materials will enable routine defect-property determination and accelerate materials research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yucheng Yang
- Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, United States
| | - Kaikui Xu
- Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, United States
| | - Luke N Holtzman
- Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics, Columbia University, New York, New York 10027, United States
| | - Kristyna Yang
- Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, United States
| | - Kenji Watanabe
- Research Center for Electronic and Optical Materials, National Institute for Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba 305-0044, Japan
| | - Takashi Taniguchi
- Research Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba 305-0044, Japan
| | - James Hone
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Columbia University, New York, New York 10027, United States
| | - Katayun Barmak
- Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics, Columbia University, New York, New York 10027, United States
| | - Matthew R Rosenberger
- Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, United States
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