Experimental Study on Thermal Conductivity and Rectification in Suspended Monolayer MoS₂

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Condensed Matter Physics
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Thermal rectification, where heat flows directionally, is crucial for thermal management.
• Two-dimensional monolayer molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) possesses unique thermal, optical, and electrical properties.
• Experimental measurement of thermal rectification in monolayer MoS2 has been lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To experimentally demonstrate and quantify thermal rectification in monolayer MoS2.
• To investigate the influence of geometrical morphology on thermal rectification.
• To explore the potential applications of MoS2 in thermal energy control.

Main Methods:

• Transferring monolayer MoS2 samples with varying morphologies onto suspended microelectrodes using the PMMA approach.
• Heating microelectrodes with AC power to induce directional heat flow.
• Experimentally measuring thermal conductivity and quantifying thermal rectification coefficients.

Main Results:

• Successfully achieved and measured thermal rectification in monolayer MoS2 for the first time.
• Reported rectification coefficients ranging from 10-13% to 69-70% for different MoS2 morphologies.
• Validated the dependence of thermal rectification on geometrical asymmetry through a theoretical model.

Conclusions:

• Monolayer MoS2 exhibits significant thermal rectification due to its inherent asymmetric structure.
• The geometrical configuration of MoS2 significantly impacts its thermal rectification performance.
• Monolayer MoS2 holds substantial promise for advanced thermal energy management applications.