theoretical investigation into the effect of surface tension component ratios between the polar and dispersion components of applied solvents and 2D materials (Figure 3b). [523] The results indicated that a solvent suited for certain 2D materials LPE should have surface tension component ratios similar to the 2D materials. [523] However, direct exfoliation using sonication and Figure 3. Top-down approaches in 2D materials preparation. a) Schematically illustration of ultrasonic-assisted exfoliation. Reproduced with permission. [524] Copyright 2013, American Association for the Advancement of Science. b) Top and middle rows: dispersibility of graphene and MoS 2 as a function of total surface tension and polar to dispersive ratio. Bottom row showing the thickness histogram of graphene and MoS 2 exfoliated using solvents with the optimal surface tension and polar to dispersive component ratio. Reproduced with permission. [523] Copyright 2015, American Chemical Society. c) Detailed schematic of cathodic exfoliation (top) and anodic exfoliation (bottom) of graphene from graphite. Reproduced with permission. [1184] Copyright 2015, Elsevier. d) DFT calculation results of ion-intercalation exfoliation of graphite into graphene using SO 4 2− ion (bottom left), Li ion (top right) and K ion (bottom right). Reproduced under terms of the CC-BY license. [565] Copyright 2017, The Authors, published by the Royal Society of Chemistry. e) Left: SEM image (top) and AFM image (bottom) of a typical graphene obtained by ion-intercalated exfoliation. Right: Lateral size (top) and thickness (bottom) distribution of graphene through ion-intercalation exfoliation. Reproduced with permission.