Researchers at Linköping University, Sweden, have created a method enabling the synthesis of hundreds of new two-dimensional (2D) materials
Since the discovery of graphene, it has been a quest to find ultra-thin material only a few atoms thick.
Finding new 2D materials
These materials have many unique properties that make them promising for various applications, including energy storage, catalysis, and water purification.
Professor Johanna Rosén, leading the study in Materials Physics at Linköping University, explains the significance of 2D materials: “In a film that’s only a millimetre thin, there can be millions of layers of the material. Between the layers, there can be a lot of chemical reactions, and thanks to this, 2D materials can be used for energy storage or for generating fuels, for example,”
Current 2D materials
MXenes have been produced solely from a three-dimensional precursor, a MAX phase. This parent material, comprising a transition metal (M), an (A-group) element (A), and carbon or nitrogen (X), undergoes a process called exfoliation to produce the 2D MXene.
Until now, MXenes have stood alone in the world of 2D materials. The researchers at Linköping University have introduced a theoretical model capable of predicting other suitable prototype materials for conversion into 2D forms.
Employing a three-step process, the researchers first developed a theoretical framework to identify promising prototype materials.
Through large-scale calculations at the National Supercomputer Centre, they identified 119 potential candidates from an extensive database of 66,643 materials.
Assistant Professor Jie Zhou elaborates on the process “We were able to confirm that our theoretical model worked well, and that the resulting material consisted of the correct atoms. After exfoliation, images of the material resembled the pages of a book. It’s amazing that the theory could be put into practice, thereby expanding the concept of chemical exfoliation to more materials families than MXenes,”
“2D materials can be used for energy storage or for generating fuels”
The three step findings
To validate their findings, the researchers used advanced imaging techniques, including the scanning transmission electron microscope Arwen, to scrutinise the atomic structure of the synthesised material.
This breakthrough opens the door to many new 2D materials with unparalleled properties, paving the way for transformative technological applications. The researchers now aim to explore additional prototype materials and scale their experiments.
Looking ahead, Professor Johanna Rosén envisions a vast array of potential applications: ” You can imagine capturing carbon dioxide or purifying water, for example. Now it’s about scaling up the synthesis and doing it in a sustainable way.”
