One-molecule-thick material breaks new ground

An anonymous reader writes: MIT News reports today that they can produce complex electronic circuits from molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), a material that could have many more applications. Possessing exceptional strength and other novel properties, the form of MoS2 — "graphene" is a planar sheet structure merely one atom thick. Coming up with ways to use the substance has captured the imagination of researchers around the world. Jointly funded by the U.S. Office of Naval Research, the Microelectronics Advanced Research Corporation Focus Center for Materials, the National Science Foundation and the Army Research Laboratory, a deep focus on MoS2 and other two-dimensional (2D) materials, have revealed excellent electrical and optical properties. Sharing many of graphene’s advantages, specific properties of MoS2 allows it to overcome challenges of zero-bandgap graphene. Tomás Palacios, the Emmanuel E. Landsman Associate Professor of EECS, suggests this opens the door to an entirely new domain of production. Palacios believes this may be the most exciting advance in electronics in 20-30 years. A whole family of two-dimensional materials may be on the horizon and yield breakthroughs in optics, electronics, and stuctural materials.