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Oxidising and carburising catalyst conditioning for the controlled growth and transfer of large crystal monolayer hexagonal boron nitride

Published version
Peer-reviewed

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Authors

Fan, Ye 
Veigang-Radulescu, Vlad-Petru 
Pollard, Andrew J 

Abstract

Abstract: Hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) is well-established as a requisite support, encapsulant and barrier for 2D material technologies, but also recently as an active material for applications ranging from hyperbolic metasurfaces to room temperature single-photon sources. Cost-effective, scalable and high quality growth techniques for h-BN layers are critically required. We utilise widely-available iron foils for the catalytic chemical vapour deposition (CVD) of h-BN and report on the significant role of bulk dissolved species in h-BN CVD, and specifically, the balance between dissolved oxygen and carbon. A simple pre-growth conditioning step of the iron foils enables us to tailor an error-tolerant scalable CVD process to give exceptionally large h-BN monolayer domains. We also develop a facile method for the improved transfer of as-grown h-BN away from the iron surface by means of the controlled humidity oxidation and subsequent rapid etching of a thin interfacial iron oxide; thus, avoiding the impurities from the bulk of the foil. We demonstrate wafer-scale (2″) production and utilise this h-BN as a protective layer for graphene towards integrated (opto-)electronic device fabrication.

Description

Funder: H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions; doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/100010665

Keywords

Paper, Focus on Scalable Encapsulation of 2D Materials, hexagonal boron nitride, large crystal, monolayer, chemical vapor deposition, 2D materials, transfer, encapsulation

Journal Title

2D Materials

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

2053-1583

Volume Title

7

Publisher

IOP Publishing
Sponsorship
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/M508007/1, EP/P005152/1)
National Physical Laboratory (121452)
Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 (1851)
Horizon 2020 Framework Programme (785219)