Authors
Changhwan Kim, Hyeon Cho, Chuqiao Shi, Mingyu Jang, Wenxuan Zhu, Subin Im, Minhyuk Choi, Gayeon Lee, Seonguk Yang, Xinyan Li, Namwook Hur, Miso Kim, Srinibas Nandi, Melike Erdi, Phani Motamarri, Seung-Cheol Lee, Satadeep Bhattacharjee, Seth Ariel Tongay, Seungwoo Song, Tae-Eon Park, Yimo Han, Bonggeun Shong, Joonki Suh
Published in
Science advances. Volume 12. Issue 30. Pages eaef1430. Jul 24, 2026. Epub Jul 24, 2026.
Abstract
Van der Waals (vdW) epitaxy can integrate lattice-mismatched crystals with atomically sharp, pristine interfaces. However, translating this concept to atomic layer deposition (ALD), a standard for low-temperature, layer-by-layer growth, remains challenging because precursors adsorb transiently on chemically inert vdW basal planes, leading to physisorption-limited nucleation and poor crystalline ordering. Here, we introduce diffusion-steered epitaxial ALD (Epi-ALD), redefining vdW surfaces as programmable kinetic-thermodynamic landscapes and demonstrate highly crystalline tellurium at 150°C. Epi-ALD couples surface-potential-encoded physisorption with long-range diffusion to promote ordered nucleation and epitaxial alignment. This "soft" pathway enables strain-free tellurium epitaxy with a pristine vdW gap (∼1.4 angstrom) despite lattice mismatch (>3.6%) and generalizes across multiple vdW templates. Retaining hallmark advantages of ALD including scalability and uniformity, we further program in-plane orientation through vdW symmetry engineering to achieve quasi-single-crystalline tellurium films with pronounced anisotropy and a chiral anomaly signature. Our work establishes a universal, low-thermal-budget approach for integrating vdW materials and expands the scope of epitaxy within the ALD paradigm.
PMID:
42497268
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 25 Jul 2026.
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