Abstract

It is well known that structural defects have a remarkable influence on the optical, electrical, and catalytic properties of 2D materials [1-2]. In addition to imaging utilization, irradiation with electron and ion beams allows precise control of defect generation by altering beam conditions and exposure dose [3-5]. We have studied the effects of ion irradiation on 2D materials by using analytical potential molecular dynamics combined with Monte Carlo simulations. In particular, we focused on the defect production mechanisms and characterized different types of defects in transition-metal dichalcogenides [6,7]. The amount of damage in MoS2 monolayer by the impacts of noble gas clusters was explored for a wide range of energies and incident angles. It was found that the behavior of free-standing and supported 2D materials under the ion beam can be quite different, as the backscattered ions or atoms sputtered from the substrate can completely govern defect production [8]. We showed that cluster irradiation can produce uniform pores in 2D MoS2 nanomeshes for applications such as gas separation [9]. The possibility of changing defect concentrations or inducing local amorphization of a 2D material opens a path for tuning its physical properties via a combination of thermal treatment and a reactive vapor. Moreover, irradiation-induced defects may play a crucial role to generate luminescent centers to enable quantum emitter applications [10].

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