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Fast and reliable identification of atomically thin layers of TaSe2 crystals

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Abstract

Deposition of clean and defect-free atomically thin two-dimensional crystalline flakes on surfaces by mechanical exfoliation of layered bulk materials has proven to be a powerful technique, but it requires a fast, reliable and non-destructive way to identify the atomically thin flakes among a crowd of thick flakes. In this work, we provide general guidelines to identify ultrathin flakes of TaSe2 by means of optical microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Additionally, we determine the optimal substrates to facilitate the optical identification of atomically thin TaSe2 crystals. Experimental realization and isolation of ultrathin layers of TaSe2 enables future studies on the role of the dimensionality in interesting phenomena such as superconductivity and charge density waves.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg 1, 2628 CJ, Delft, The Netherlands

    Andres Castellanos-Gomez, Herre S. J. van der Zant & Gary A. Steele

  2. Instituto Ciencia Molecular (ICMol), Univ. Valencia, C/Catedrático José Beltrán 2, E-46980, Paterna, Spain

    Efrén Navarro-Moratalla, Elena Pinilla-Cienfuegos & Eugenio Coronado

  3. Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada (C-III), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain

    Guillermo Mokry, Jorge Quereda, Nicolás Agraït & Gabino Rubio-Bollinger

  4. Instituto Madrileño de Estudios Avanzados en Nanociencia IMDEA-Nanociencia, E-28049, Madrid, Spain

    Nicolás Agraït

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  1. Andres Castellanos-Gomez
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  2. Efrén Navarro-Moratalla
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  3. Guillermo Mokry
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Correspondence to Andres Castellanos-Gomez or Gabino Rubio-Bollinger.

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Castellanos-Gomez, A., Navarro-Moratalla, E., Mokry, G. et al. Fast and reliable identification of atomically thin layers of TaSe2 crystals. Nano Res. 6, 191–199 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-013-0295-9

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