Largely enhanced out-of-plane electromechanical coupling effects in two-dimensional molybdenum-disulfide/boron-nitride heterostructures

authored by: Qiong Liu, Vijay Kumar Choyal, James E. Morris, Timon Rabczuk, Xiaoning Jiang, Xiaoying Zhuang
Abstract: The electromechanical coupling effects in two-dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have attracted great interest. However, for 2D TMDs, piezoelectricity is confined to the basal plane, and the flexoelectricity-derived out-of-plane electromechanical response is usually faint, limiting the applications of this material family using the out-of-plane electromechanical effects. Here, this work reports a facile strategy to greatly enhance the out-of-plane electromechanical response of hexagonal molybdenum disulfide (2H-MoS₂) nanoflakes by stacking monolayer hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) on 2H-MoS₂ nanoflakes to form MoS₂/BN heterostructures. d^eff 33 The coefficient of MoS₂/BN can reach a value comparable to that of commonly used wurtzite bulk piezoelectric materials, such as AlN and GaN. The strong out-of-plane electromechanical response of MoS₂/BN is due to the breaking of the out-of-plane structural symmetry. Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) results show an increased effective work function of MoS₂/BN, indicating polar-structure formation at the heterostructure interface, which also accounts for the enhanced out-of-plane piezoresponse. This study gives an insight into the role of heterostructure engineering in the electromechanical performances of 2D TMDs, and provides this material family an opportunity for applications using out-of-plane electromechanical effects.
Organisation(s): Institute of Photonics
Laboratory of Nano and Quantum Engineering
PhoenixD: Photonics, Optics, and Engineering - Innovation Across Disciplines
External Organisation(s): Portland State University
Bauhaus-Universität Weimar
North Carolina State University
Tongji University
Type: Article
Journal: Nano research
Volume: 18
ISSN: 1998-0124
Publication date: 01.2025
Publication status: Published
Peer reviewed: Yes
ASJC Scopus subject areas: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics, General Materials Science, Condensed Matter Physics, Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Electronic version(s): https://doi.org/10.26599/NR.2025.94907050 (Access: Open)
: Details in the research portal "Research@Leibniz University"

BibTeX

@article{0cca0706266446f0b8ddb84e1f52687d,
title = "Largely enhanced out-of-plane electromechanical coupling effects in two-dimensional molybdenum-disulfide/boron-nitride heterostructures",
abstract = "The electromechanical coupling effects in two-dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have attracted great interest. However, for 2D TMDs, piezoelectricity is confined to the basal plane, and the flexoelectricity-derived out-of-plane electromechanical response is usually faint, limiting the applications of this material family using the out-of-plane electromechanical effects. Here, this work reports a facile strategy to greatly enhance the out-of-plane electromechanical response of hexagonal molybdenum disulfide (2H-MoS2) nanoflakes by stacking monolayer hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) on 2H-MoS2 nanoflakes to form MoS2/BN heterostructures. deff 33 The coefficient of MoS2/BN can reach a value comparable to that of commonly used wurtzite bulk piezoelectric materials, such as AlN and GaN. The strong out-of-plane electromechanical response of MoS2/BN is due to the breaking of the out-of-plane structural symmetry. Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) results show an increased effective work function of MoS2/BN, indicating polar-structure formation at the heterostructure interface, which also accounts for the enhanced out-of-plane piezoresponse. This study gives an insight into the role of heterostructure engineering in the electromechanical performances of 2D TMDs, and provides this material family an opportunity for applications using out-of-plane electromechanical effects.",
keywords = "flexoelectricity, out-of-plane electromechanical coupling, symmetry breaking, transition metal dichalcogenides, two-dimensional heterostructures",
author = "Qiong Liu and Choyal, {Vijay Kumar} and Morris, {James E.} and Timon Rabczuk and Xiaoning Jiang and Xiaoying Zhuang",
note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The Author(s) 2025.",
year = "2025",
month = jan,
doi = "10.26599/NR.2025.94907050",
language = "English",
volume = "18",
journal = "Nano research",
issn = "1998-0124",
publisher = "Tsinghua University Press",
number = "1",
}

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