Issue 48, 2024

Promotion of a Mo-based ionic crystal precursor for MoS2 wafer growth

Abstract

Two-dimensional MoS2 semiconductors have emerged as a promising solution for extending Moore's law. Nevertheless, their wafer-scale growth from lab to fab is still in infancy stages within the semiconductor industry. The distribution, concentration, and reactivity of both sulfur and molybdenum precursors exert a substantial influence on the uniformity of MoS2 wafers, including on parameters such as the grain size, thickness, and vacancy density. While considerable emphasis has been directed towards sulfur precursors—such as those derived from ZnS, which facilitate MoS2 growth—the role of molybdenum precursors and their associated growth mechanisms remain inadequately understood. In this study, we investigated the effects of covalent and ionic molybdenum precursors, grounded in the principles of chemical vapor deposition, with the aim of identifying a universal synthesis pathway for wafer production. Our findings indicate that the reaction kinetics of Na2MoO4, a representative ionic precursor, are particularly advantageous for controlling wafer growth defects and enhancing surface homogeneity in comparison to those of MoO3, a conventional covalent precursor. Evaporated [MoO4]2− ions, characterized by their smaller cluster size, exhibited high reactivity, facilitating uniform control over MoS2 wafer characteristics. Furthermore, we demonstrate that a 2-inch monolayer MoS2 film could be synthesized within a growth timeframe of 3–5 minutes using ionic precursors, achieving a mobility of 12 cm2 V−1 s−1 and a maximum Ion/Ioff ratio of 9.87 × 109. This study elucidates the growth mechanisms of MoS2 wafers and contributes to the advancement of MoS2-based electronic systems.

Graphical abstract: Promotion of a Mo-based ionic crystal precursor for MoS2 wafer growth

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
16 Jul 2024
Accepted
01 Nov 2024
First published
06 Nov 2024

Nanoscale, 2024,16, 22403-22410

Promotion of a Mo-based ionic crystal precursor for MoS2 wafer growth

J. Liu, C. Zhang, Y. Huang, H. Wu, C. Tan and Z. Wang, Nanoscale, 2024, 16, 22403 DOI: 10.1039/D4NR02955K

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