Cyclic Silylselenides: Convenient Selenium Precursors for Atomic Layer Deposition.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Inorganic Chemistry
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Development of stable and volatile precursors for thin-film deposition is crucial.
• Molybdenum diselenide (MoSe2) is a promising material for electronics and optoelectronics.
• Existing selenium precursors often lack stability or require harsh deposition conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize novel cyclic silylselenides with tunable properties.
• To evaluate their stability, volatility, and suitability as precursors for atomic layer deposition (ALD).
• To investigate the characteristics of MoSe2 films deposited using these precursors.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of three cyclic silylselenides with varying ring sizes and selenium content.
• Characterization of precursor properties including thermal stability, volatility, and resistance to moisture/oxidation.
• Atomic layer deposition (ALD) of MoSe2 thin films using the synthesized precursors.
• Structural and compositional analysis of deposited MoSe2 using Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Main Results:

• Successfully synthesized three cyclic silylselenides with improved moisture/oxidation resistance, thermal robustness, and volatility.
• The six-membered diselenide demonstrated superior performance as a selenium precursor for ALD.
• Facile preparation of vertically aligned, flaky MoSe2 nanosheets with high quality was achieved.
• Characterization confirmed the composition and structure of the deposited MoSe2 layers.

Conclusions:

• Cyclic silylselenides offer a promising class of precursors for ALD applications.
• The six-membered diselenide is a highly effective precursor for depositing high-quality MoSe2 nanosheets.
• This work advances the development of stable and efficient precursors for 2D material synthesis.