FLEET seminar. Liquid metals: an ideal platform for the synthesis of two-dimensional materials

Patjaree Aukarasereenont, PhD candidate, RMIT

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The surfaces of liquid metals can serve as a platform to synthesise two-dimensional materials. By exploiting the self-limiting Cabrera-Mott oxidation reaction that takes place at the surface of liquid metals exposed to ambient air, an ultrathin oxide layer can be synthesised and isolated. Several synthesis approaches based on this phenomenon have been developed in recent years, resulting in a diverse family of functional 2D materials that covers a significant fraction of the periodic table. These straightforward and inherently scalable techniques may enable the fabrication of novel devices and thus harbour significant application potential. This review provides a brief introduction to liquid metals and their alloys, followed by detailed guidance on each developed synthesis technique, post-growth processing methods, integration processes, as well as potential applications of the developed materials.

In 2021, Patjaree published research in Nature Electronics that could pave the way to transparent and therefore more effective and energy efficient electronics. Such see-through devices could potentially be integrated in glass, in flexible displays, in smart contact lenses, electronics and communication technology, reducing the carbon footprint of our utility networks.

Patjaree is also the first author on a recent review on liquid metal synthesis in Chemical Society Reviews. And a second author on this review in Chemical Society Reviews on using liquid metal printing and transfer techniques to synthesise 2D metal oxides.