Issue 4, 2025

Synthesis of Xenes: physical and chemical methods

Abstract

Since the debut of silicene in the experimental stage more than a decade ago, the family of two-dimensional elementary layers beyond graphene, called Xenes or transgraphenes, has rapidly expanded to include elements from groups II to VI of the periodic table. This expansion has opened pathways for the engineering of elementary monolayers that are inherently different from their bulk counterparts in terms of fundamental physical properties. Common guidelines for synthesizing Xenes can be categorized into well-defined methodological approaches. On the one hand, bottom-up methods, such as physical epitaxial methods, enable the growth of monolayers, multilayers, and heterostructured Xenes. On the other hand, top-down chemical methods, including topotactic deintercalation and liquid-phase exfoliation, are gaining prominence due to the possibility of massive production. This review provides an extensive view of the currently available synthesis routes for Xenes, highlighting the full range of Xenes reported to date, along with the most relevant identification techniques.

Graphical abstract: Synthesis of Xenes: physical and chemical methods

Article information

Article type
Review Article
Submitted
07 Oct 2024
First published
23 Jan 2025
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY license

Chem. Soc. Rev., 2025,54, 1845-1869

Synthesis of Xenes: physical and chemical methods

A. Molle, J. Yuhara, Y. Yamada-Takamura and Z. Sofer, Chem. Soc. Rev., 2025, 54, 1845 DOI: 10.1039/D4CS00999A

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements