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Beyond turbostratic disorder: Towards epitaxial alignment in Bi2Se3/MoSe2 van-der-Waals bilayer stacks grown from amorphous elemental precursors

Fabian Göhler1,2,3,4,*, Fabian Ganss1,5, Aalaa Osman1, Olav Hellwig1,2,5, David C. Johnson3, and Thomas Seyller1,2

  • *Contact author: fabian.goehler@physik.tu-chemnitz.de
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Phys. Rev. Materials 9, 074005 – Published 18 July, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/wn8y-xvyh

Abstract

Bottom-up synthetic approaches to synthesize stacks of individual quasi-two-dimensional materials remain a major experimental challenge. Here, we evaluate the applicability of the little-known technique of modulated elemental reactants (MER) for the synthesis of one-unit-cell-thick Bi2Se3/MoSe2 bilayer stacks via the self-assembly of amorphous elemental Bi|Se and Mo|Se precursors. Using a two-step annealing approach, both layers can be crystallized in a single heterostructure, as evidenced by a combination of x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and x-ray diffraction. However, we observe a limited stability of the Bi2Se3 layer, reflected in its partial decomposition under conditions required to crystallize MoSe2. The choice of substrate proves to be a crucial piece to control the thin film growth: We demonstrate the evolution of larger-scale epitaxial alignment within a heterostructure grown via MER by low-energy electron diffraction.

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Phys. Rev. Materials 9, 074005– Published 18 July, 2025
  • Received 30 March 2025
  • Revised 25 June 2025
  • Accepted 9 July 2025
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