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Intercalation Of Si Between Mos2 Layers, Rik Van Bremen, Qirong Yao, Soumya Banerjee, Deniz Cakir, Nuri Oncel, Harold J.W. Zandvliet

Physics Faculty Publications

We report a combined experimental and theoretical study of the growth of sub-monolayer amounts of silicon (Si) on molybdenum disulfide (MoS2). At room temperature and low deposition rates we have found compelling evidence that the deposited Si atoms intercalate between the MoS2 layers. Our evidence relies on several experimental observations: (1) Upon the deposition of Si on pristine MoS2 the morphology of the surface transforms from a smooth surface to a hill-and-valley surface. The lattice constant of the hill-and-valley structure amounts to 3.16 Å, which is exactly the lattice constant of pristine MoS2. (2) The transitions from hills to valleys …