New developed plasma material fundamental for the Internet of Things

QUT Professor Ken Ostrikov of the School of Chemistry and Physics and QUT Center for Materials Science said the new material could be used to develop novel transistor devices for electronics and photodetectors for applications such as fiber optic communication systems and environmental detection.

‘Transistors are small electrical switches that make up computer chips that run lighting devices such as LEDs and photodetectors, which detect light of different colors and intensities,’ Professor Ostrikov said.

“These are all elements of sensing and communication devices in the Internet of Things and are the next generation of intelligent devices.

“The new material we have developed will allow smart devices to process information faster and to talk better to each other, make decisions and act.

“Everything from space travel to healthcare, from smart cities to our homes will potentially benefit from this material.”

The new semiconductor material was developed using plasma (ionized gas) to separate atomically thin semiconductor layers with oxygen atoms.

“It is normally very difficult to insert the oxygen molecules between the layers, so we used the plasma and the electric fields generated by the plasma to charge the oxygen molecules and then guide them to squeeze between the two layers, lifting the upper layer from the lower one,” He said.

“When separated, the two atomic layers are electrically isolated from each other and electrons can flow along each 2-D layer without losing electrons in the adjacent layer.

“This process has produced new properties such as strong photoluminescence and photocurrent that can be used in devices to provide greater controllability and achievable currents, light doses and responsiveness that are currently difficult to achieve.

“This new material could make the Internet of Things and other devices more effective, faster and cheaper to produce.”

Research article 2-D atomic crystal molecular superlattices by soft plasma intercalation was published in Nature Communications.

The collaborative project was co-led by QUT Visiting Researcher Professor Shaoqing Xiao of Jiangnan University, and Professor Kostya (Ken) Ostrikov of QUT School of Chemistry and Physics and QUT Center for Materials Science.

It involved a team of researchers and students from Jiangnan University, co-tutored by Professors Xiao and Ostrikov, and Professor Aijun Du of the QUT School of Chemistry and Physics and QUT Center for Materials Science.