SCIENTIFIC ACHIEVEMENT
Using a new method for stabilizing a two-dimensional (2D) metal on a large-area platform, researchers probed the origins of the material’s superconductivity at the Advanced Light Source (ALS).
SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT
The work represents a notable milestone in advancing 2D materials toward broad applications in topological computing, advanced optics, and molecular sensing.
Expanding the scientific palette
If you confine everyday metals to layers only a few atoms thick, they acquire new properties that are different from those exhibited by their more common bulk forms. The ability to synthesize such two-dimensional (2D) metals means that the range of materials available for novel uses can be expanded to different areas of the periodic table—providing a much richer “scientific palette” of properties for applications in topological computing, advanced optics, and molecular sensing.
Read more on the ALS website
Image: A confined layer of metal atoms (silver spheres) on a silicon carbide (SiC) substrate is capped by a layer of graphene, allowing for new forms of low-dimensional metals with unique properties. Gold spheres represent Cooper pairs, responsible for conventional superconductivity.
Credit: Yihuang Xiong/Penn State
