Simple Formation of Nanostructured Molybdenum Disulfide Thin Films by Electrodeposition

Abstract

Nanostructured molybdenum disulfide thin films were deposited on various substrates by direct current (DC) electrolysis form aqueous electrolyte containing molybdate and sulfide ions. Post deposition annealing at higher temperatures in the range 450–700°C transformed the as-deposited amorphous films to nanocrystalline structure. High temperature X-ray diffraction studies clearly recorded the crystal structure transformations associated with grain growth with increase in annealing temperature. Surface morphology investigations revealed featureless structure in case of as-deposited surface; upon annealing it converts into a surface with protruding nanotubes, nanorods, or dumbbell shape nanofeatures. UV-visible and FTIR spectra confirmed about the presence of Mo-S bonding in the deposited films. Transmission electron microscopic examination showed that the annealed MoS2films consist of nanoballs, nanoribbons, and multiple wall nanotubes.

Tunable bandgap and spin-orbit coupling by composition control of MoS 2 and MoO x (x = 2 and 3) thin film compounds

“…However, according to Ref. 15 a transition metal substrate is required to act as catalyst to have MoS 2 , but in this research we show that it is possible to have a composition of these compounds on a transparent substrate of FTO. We provide a fabrication recipe to control each of these MoS 2 /MoO 2 /MoO 3 compounds and report on their interesting characteristics.…”

“…DC electrodeposition was carried out to make thin layers from an electrolyte containing sodium molybdate (Na 2 Mo 2 O 4 ) (0.5 M) with disodium sulphide (Na 2 S.5H 2 O) (30gr/l) similar to Ref. 15 The pH value of the electrolyte was adjusted to 7 by adding dilute sulphuric acid. A two electrode potentiostat having Pt as anode and FTO substrate as cathode was employed for the film growth.…”

“…Various techniques such as chemical vapor deposition 14 or mechanical (liquid phase) exfoliation have been employed for fabrication of transition metal dichalcogenide compounds, but there is few attempts to fabricate these materials by electrodeposition. [15][16][17] In order to exploit the electrical and optical properties of MoS 2 / MoO x (x=2 and 3) composition at first we refer to the properties of them independently. The bulk MoS 2 crystal has a trigonal prismatic structure with an inversion symmetry in the middle of the two MoS 2 monolayers.…”

CO-ELECTRODEPOSITION OF THIN Mo-S FILMS

“…Nanostructured thin films of molybdenum disulfide have been deposited on various substrates in the electrolyzer at a constant current from an aqueous electrolyte containing molybdate and sulfide ions by the authors of [3]. An-nealing the deposited thin films at higher temperatures in the range of 450-700 0 C, turns the deposited amorphous films into a nanocrystalline structure.…”

The Influence of Various Factors on Electrochemical Reduction of the Bismuth Ions

“…Recently, the increasing interest in synthesis of thin films from various semiconductive materials for their application in many areas of technology has been observed: in solar cells, sensors, optical storage devices ets. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7].…”