Synthesis and Application of Monolayer Semiconductors (June 2015)

Recently, semiconducting monolayers, such as MoS₂ and WSe₂, have been highlighted for their spin-valley coupling, diverse band structures, bendability, and excellent optoelectronic performances. With a subnanometer thickness of atomic layers, the transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDc) atomic layers demonstrate a significant photoresponse, considerable absorption to incident sunlight and favorable transport performances, leading to applications in the electronic circuit requiring low stand-by power, diverse optoelectronic devices, and next-generation nanoelectronics. Therefore, the class of monolayer TMDc offers a burgeoning field in materials science, fundamental physics, and optoelectronics. A feasible synthetic process to realize controlled synthesis of large area and high quality of TMDc monolayers is in demands. In this review, we will introduce the progress on synthesis and applications of the TMDc atomic layers.