Chalcogenide Spin Injection from Iron- and Nickel-Based Edge Modulation Doping

Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) possess physical properties that make them potentially useful as both thermoelectric and topological insulator materials. Rapid, high-yield synthesis of TMDs like bismuth telluride, antimony telluride and bismuth selenide is possible through solution-liquid-solid (SLS) colloidal chemistry techniques. Subsequent edge doping with noble metals (e.g. silver and copper) is known to enhance TMD thermoelectric parameters such as conductivity and the Seebeck coefficient. Iron and nickel may also play roles as useful dopants thanks to their magnetic properties and potential for spin current injection at the chalcogenide-dopant interface. In this work, bismuth telluride and antimony telluride were synthesized and then doped with different iron and nickel concentrations using SLS chemistry. Preliminary studies of magnetic and thermoelectric performance are ongoing, while STM imaging and analysis of these materials will soon be undertaken. Possible applications of spin-injected TMDs range from quantum computation to gravitational wave detection to biomedicine.