Raman fingerprint for semi-metal WTe2 evolving from bulk to monolayer

Tungsten ditelluride (WTe2), a layered transition-metal dichalcogenide (TMD), has recently demonstrated an extremely large magnetoresistance effect, which is unique among TMDs. This fascinating feature seems to be correlated with its special electronic structure. Here, we report the observation of 6 Raman peaks corresponding to the A2(4), A1(9), A1(8), A1(5), and A1(2) phonons, from the 33 Raman-active modes predicted for WTe2. This provides direct evidence to distinguish the space group of WTe2 from those of other TMDs. Moreover, the Raman evolution of WTe2 from bulk to monolayer is clearly revealed. It is interesting to find that the A2(4) mode, centered at ~109.8 cm(-1), is forbidden in a monolayer, which may be attributable to the transition of the point group from C2v (bulk) to C2h (monolayer). Our work characterizes all observed Raman peaks in the bulk and few-layer samples and provides a route to study the physical properties of two-dimensional WTe2.