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Phosphorus Pentamers: Floating Nanoflowers form a 2D Network
Author(s) -
Zhang Wei,
Enriquez Hanna,
Tong Yongfeng,
Mayne Andrew J.,
Bendounan Azzedine,
Dappe Yannick J.,
Kara Abdelkader,
Dujardin Gérald,
Oughaddou Hamid
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
advanced functional materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.069
H-Index - 322
eISSN - 1616-3028
pISSN - 1616-301X
DOI - 10.1002/adfm.202004531
Subject(s) - pentamer , materials science , scanning tunneling microscope , chemical physics , substrate (aquarium) , layer (electronics) , phase (matter) , crystallography , scanning tunneling spectroscopy , diffusion , nanotechnology , chemistry , physics , biochemistry , oceanography , organic chemistry , geology , thermodynamics
An experimental investigation of a new polymorphic 2D single layer of phosphorus on Ag(111) is presented. The atomically‐resolved scanning tunneling microscopy images show a new 2D material composed of freely‐floating phosphorus pentamers organized into a 2D layer, where the pentamers are aligned in close‐packed rows. The scanning tunneling spectroscopy measurements reveal a semiconducting character with a band gap of 1.20 eV. This work presents the formation at low temperature of a new polymorphic 2D phosphorus layer composed of a floating 2D pentamer structure. The smooth curved terrace edges and a lack of any clear crystallographic orientation with respect to the Ag(111) substrate at room temperature indicates a smooth potential energy surface that is reminiscent of a liquid‐like growth phase. This is confirmed by density functional theory calculations that find a small energy barrier of only 0.17 eV to surface diffusion of the pentamers (see Supporting Information). The formation of extended, homogeneous domains is a key ingredient to opening a new avenue to integrate this new 2D material into electronic devices.