Ultrathin coating to protect 2-D materials from corrosion

October 16, 2019

Professors Ju Li and JJ Hu are a part of a team of researchers that has developed an ultrathin coating for use as a protective layer for important 2D materials.

Many 2D materials have promising properties for optical, electronic, or other applications, but are held back by the ease with which they degrade when exposed to oxygen and water vapor. Now, these researchers have created a coating that is inexpensive and easily to apply and remove. This new coating, based on a family of compounds known as linear alkylamines, can be applied with a thinness of as little as 1 nanometer, is impervious to many liquids and solvents, blocks the penetration of oxygen, and generally extends the material's lifetime by 100.

Their development could provide a way to overcome the "first hurdle" in attempting to work with promising 2D materials, opening up new areas of research.