Detecting defects in tomorrow’s technology: Study enhances understanding of likely candidate for next-generation chips

Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory and the University of Delaware have provided new insights into the variations that can occur in the atomic structure of two-dimensional materials called transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). The researchers found that one of the defects, which involves hydrogen, provides excess electrons. The other type of defect, called a chalcogen vacancy, is a missing atom of oxygen, sulfur, selenium, or tellurium. By shining light on the TMD, the researchers showed unexpected frequencies of light coming from the TMD, which could be explained by the movement of electrons related to the chalcogen vacancy.