Microwave Synthesized 2D Gold and Its 2D-2D Hybrids

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Surface Chemistry

Background:

• Two-dimensional (2D) atomic sheets (Xenes) offer exceptional carrier mobility for advanced sensors.
• Most Xenes oxidize at high temperatures, limiting their application range.
• 2D gold is a promising, oxidation-resistant plasmonic Xene, but facile synthesis methods are needed.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a new, facile single-step method for synthesizing 2D gold.
• To characterize the synthesized 2D gold and its properties.
• To explore the potential of 2D gold and its hybrids in electronic/optoelectronic devices and sensing applications.

Main Methods:

• Liquid-phase synthesis of 2D gold via microwave exposure of auric chloride in dimethylformamide.
• Characterization using Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Raman spectroscopy, UV-Vis spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction.
• Synthesis and investigation of 2D-2D hybrids of 2D gold.
• Density Functional Theory (DFT) band structure calculations.

Main Results:

• Successful liquid-phase synthesis of 2D gold in a single step.
• Confirmation of a hexagonal crystallographic phase for the synthesized 2D gold.
• Demonstration of electronic/optoelectronic behaviors and Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS)-based molecular sensing capabilities of 2D gold and its hybrids.
• DFT calculations corroborated experimental findings.

Conclusions:

• A facile, single-step liquid-phase synthesis method for 2D gold has been established.
• The synthesized 2D gold exhibits a hexagonal phase and promising properties for electronic, optoelectronic, and sensing applications.
• This work paves the way for utilizing oxidation-resistant 2D gold in high-temperature and advanced sensing technologies.