Charge tunable structural phase transitions in few-layer tellurium: a step toward building mono-elemental devices

Abstract

Recently, a covalent-like quasi-bonding was unveiled for the inter-chain interaction in a promising semiconductor, few-layer Tellurium. Such quasi-bond offers comparable bond lengths and strengths with those of a typical Te-Te covalent bond, which may lead to much easier transformations between the quasi-bonds and the covalent bonds. Here, we show a few structural phase-transitions among four Te allotropes in few-layer Te under charge doping. In particular, the semiconducting α-phase can transform into a smaller-bandgap β-phase, even-smaller-bandgap γ-phase and then metallic δ-phase in a Te bilayer. In a tri-layer, a metallic chiral α+δ phase is more stable under initial electron doping, leading to the appearance of chirality. Variations of electronic structures aside, these transitions are accompanied by the emergence or elimination of inversion centers (α-β, α-γ, α-α+δ), structural anisotropy (α-γ, γ-δ) and chirality (α-α+δ), which could result in substantial changes in optical and other properties. In light of this, this work opens the possibility toward building mono-elemental electronic and optoelectronic heterostructures or devices. It also offers a platform for studying relations between charge doping and electric/optical properties.

References in corpus (20)

• Quantum ESPRESSO: a modular and open-source software project for quantum simulations of materials
• Van der Waals Density Functional for General Geometries
• Van der Waals density functionals applied to solids
• High-mobility transport anisotropy and linear dichroism in few-layer black phosphorus
• A Higher-Accuracy van der Waals Density Functional
• Van der Waals density functional: Self-consistent potential and the nature of the van der Waals bond
• Field-effect transistors made from solution-grown two-dimensional tellurene
• Learning phase transitions by confusion
• Density-functional calculations of multivalency-driven formation of Te-based monolayer materials with superior electronic and optical properties
• Structural Semiconductor-to-Semimetal Phase Transition in Two-Dimensional Materials Induced by Electrostatic Gating
• 1D van der Waals Material Tellurium: Raman Spectroscopy under Strain and Magneto-transport
• Monatomic phase change memory
• Epitaxial Growth and Band Structure of Te Film on Graphene
• Few-layer Tellurium: one-dimensional-like layered elementary semiconductor with striking physical properties
• Interlayer electronic hybridization leads to exceptional thickness-dependent vibrational properties in few-layer black phosphorus
• Layer- and doping-tunable long range ferromagnetic order-ing in two-dimensional CrS2
• Polytypism and Unexpected Strong Interlayer Coupling of two-Dimensional Layered ReS2
• Correlated Electron Materials and Field Effect Transistors for Logic: A Review
• Carrier Multiplication-Induced Structural Change during Ultrafast Carrier Relaxation and Non-Thermal Phase Transition in Semiconductors
• The Role of Oxygen in Ionic Liquid Gating on 2D Cr2Ge2Te6: a Non-Oxide Material

Cited by in corpus (4)

• Bethe-Slater-curve-like behavior and interlayer spin-exchange coupling mechanisms in two-dimensional magnetic bilayers
• Performance analysis of photodetectors based on 2D materials and heterostructures
• Strong bulk photovoltaic effect and second-harmonic generation in two-dimensional selenium and tellurium
• Epitaxial fabrication of AgTe monolayer on Ag(111) and the sequential growth of Te film