Lithographically patterned metallic conduction in single-layer MoS2 via plasma processing

Abstract

Tailoring the electrical transport properties of two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides can enable the formation of atomically thin circuits. In this work, cyclic hydrogen and oxygen plasma exposures are utilized to introduce defects and oxidize MoS 2 in a controlled manner. This results in the formation of sub-stochiometric MoO 3-x , which transforms the semiconducting behavior to metallic conduction. To demonstrate functionality, single flakes of MoS 2 were lithographically oxidized using electron beam lithography and subsequent plasma exposures. This enabled the formation of atomically thin inverters from a single flake of MoS 2 , which represents an advancement toward atomically thin circuitry.