arXiv abstract link

arXiv abstract link

Spectroscopic-imaging scanning tunneling microscopy on epitaxial Ba(Fe${}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}$Co${}_{x}$)${}_{2}$As${}_{2}$ thin films reveals a translational-symmetry-broken charge-stripe order nuclea...

Attaining highly localized and precise control of nucleation has emerged as a critical requirement in modern semiconductor processing, as such precision fundamentally governs uniformity and device performance. Area-selective growth (ASG) is a promising approach that deposits target materials on the desired regions, driven by a reaction-rate difference between growth and barrier regions. Over the past few decades, ASG has evolved through various approaches, including selective epitaxial growth of silicon–germanium stressors and III–V semiconductors1,2,3, selective metallization such as tungsten gap filling and cobalt capping4,5, and area-selective atomic layer deposition (AS-ALD) for oxide spacers and nitride barriers6,7. Recently, the ASG technique has been extended to two-dimensional (2D) transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), which is a promising next-generation semiconductor, via selective chemical vapour deposition (CVD)8,9,10,11,12,13. In 2D TMD ASG, selectivity can be realized by using heterogeneous surface patterning with a barrier region through mechanisms similar to those in three-dimensional (3D) bulk ASG processes. Recently, single-crystal 2D TMDs have been demonstrated through confined growth; however, the achievable crystal size remains limited8,9. As the entire growth region generally serves as a nucleation-active region (NAR) in conventional ASG, nucleation events occur stochastically at random sites within the growth region. Such stochastic nucleation behaviour constrains the attainable single-crystal domain...

arXiv abstract link

Epitaxial quantum dots achieve over 80% photon efficiency, marking a significant step for quantum technologies.