Boron Nitride Surface Activity as Route to Composite Dielectric Films

The propensity of boron nitride sheets to stack creates obstacles for their application as multifunctional materials despite their unique thermal, mechanical, and electrical properties. To address this challenge, we use a combination of molecular dynamics simulations and experimental techniques to demonstrate surfactant-like properties of BN sheets at the interface between immiscible solvents. The spreading of two-dimensional BN sheets at a high-energy oil/water interface lowers the free energy of the system, creating films of overlapping BN sheets that are more thermodynamically favorable than stacked sheets. Coating such films onto polymers results in composite materials with exceptional barrier and dielectric properties.