Technique paves way for 2d electronics

The Rice University team began by merging graphene and hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) into sheets and building them into a variety of patterns at nanoscale dimensions. They were then able to lay down different patterns, including their university logo (pictured), through a lithographic process. The interface between the elements was said to show a 'razor sharp' transition from graphene to h-BN along a subnanometre line. "This is not a simple quilt," said Rice researcher Jun Lou. "It's very precisely engineered. We can control the domain sizes and the domain shapes, both of which are necessary to make electronic devices." While there's much work ahead to characterise the atomic bonds where graphene and h-BN domains meet, the researchers are confident that their electrical measurements prove the components' qualities remain intact. "Even by doing all kinds of growth, then etching, then regrowth, the intrinsic properties of these two materials are not affected," Lou said. "Insulators stay insulators; they're not doped by the carbon. And the graphene still looks very good. That's important, because we want to be sure what we're growing is exactly what we want." The next step for the team is to place a third element, a semiconductor, into the 2d fabric. "We're trying very hard to integrate this into the platform," Lou concluded. "If we can do that, we can build truly integrated in plane devices. That would give new options to manufacturers toying with the idea of flexible electronics."