Synthesis of ultralong Ta2Ni3Se8 van der Waals nanowires for transistor devices

One-dimensional (1D) van der Waals (vdW) nanowires can achieve maximal miniaturization while keeping intrinsic characteristics for device applications. Innovative synthesis techniques are required to manufacture nanowires of macroscopic length that are of good quality. We present the high yield production of single-crystal Ta2Ni3Se8 (TNS) nanowires with a length of several millimeters using a solid-state reaction growth. High resolution TEM studies demonstrate that nanowires are made up of parallelly organized molecular chains and lack surface amorphous oxide layers. The as-grown TNS wires can be mechanically exfoliated into nanowires with tens of nanometers or less thickness. AFM topography studies demonstrated that exfoliated wires had a consistent thickness. In addition, we show that many electrical devices can be constructed on a single TNS nanowire. Our investigations of electrical transport have revealed that these thin wires are gatable and exhibit n-type semiconducting characteristics. The 1D transistors that were created have excellent switching capability, which makes TNS a strong contender for low-dimensional electronics. This research could pave the way for the creation of novel 1D vdW nanowires for use in electronics and sensors of the next generation.



*This work is supported by NSF grant #1752997