Understanding metal organic chemical vapour deposition of monolayer WS2

The enhancing role of Au substrate for simple organosulfur precursors was studied with Ambient Pressure X-ray X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy. As reported in Nanoscale, Professor Weatherup and coworkers used a deconstructed metal–organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) model process to understand the detailed chemical reaction during MOCVD process and discover the significant enhancing role of Au on the sulfidation step, which results WS₂ monolayer growth with a simple organosulfide like dimethylsulfide. The reaction scheme also opens future operando process characterisation opportunities, to further progress the understanding of the underlying mechanisms.