TY - GEN A1 - Froeschke, Samuel A1 - Yasmen, Nadia A1 - Popov, Alexey A1 - Schiemenz, Sandra A1 - Wolf, Daniel A1 - Giebeler, Lars A1 - Hantusch, Martin A1 - Gräßler, Nico A1 - Büchner, Bernd A1 - Schmidt, Peer A1 - Hampel, Silke T1 - Controlled Nanoplatelet Deposition of 2D Chromium Trihalide Solid Solutions T2 - Chemistry of Materials N2 - The two-dimensional (2D) chromium trihalides CrCl3, CrBr3, and CrI3 are most famous for their exotic magnetic properties when their crystals get downscaled to nanometer dimensions. One way to tune the properties of such materials and to further increase their potential utility, e.g., in spintronics, is the formation of solid solutions. Here, we present a detailed theoretical and experimental study on the synthesis and nanoplatelet growth of CrBrxCl3–x and CrBrxI3–x solid solutions. Phase pure powder was obtained by tempering the respective parent compounds at 600 and 550 °C, using additional iodine in the case of CrBrxI3–x. The dominant stacking order changes at x = 1.8 for CrBrxCl3–x while remaining similar to CrI3 for the whole CrBrxI3–x series. A consecutive chemical vapor transport from 575 → 525 °C for 2 h (CrBrxCl3–x) or 600 → 550 °C for 3 h with 0.1 mmol additional iodine (CrBrxI3–x) resulted in the deposition of high-quality nanoplatelets on a substrate with only several nanometers in height. The composition can be controlled by the choice of the starting material, since only small shifts in the anion ratio occur during the transport. The deposited CrBrxCl3–x nanoplatelets can then be easily delaminated by ultrasonication in ethanol to reduce the height even further to few-layer dimensions. These nanoplatelets could potentially be used to investigate the property changes (e.g., in terms of magnetic response) for the downscaling of these solid solutions. We further demonstrate the quality of the deposited material by transmission electron microscopy, selected area electron diffraction, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Raman spectroscopy of the solid solution series reveals a complex evolution of vibrational modes. Photoluminescence measurements on solid solution samples show emission peaks in the near-infrared energy range with the specific energy and intensity being composition and temperature dependent. KW - 2D layered compounds KW - Chemical vapor transport KW - Crystal growth KW - Crystal structure KW - Halides KW - Thermodynamic modeling Y1 - 2023 UR - https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c03785 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c03785 SN - 1520-5002 SN - 0897-4756 VL - 35 IS - 11 SP - 4136 EP - 4148 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Froeschke, Samuel A1 - Schroth, Karl-Georg A1 - Steiner, Udo A1 - Popov, Alexey A1 - Schiemenz, Sandra A1 - Wolf, Daniel A1 - Giebeler, Lars A1 - Gräßler, Nico A1 - Büchner, Bernd A1 - Schmidt, Peer A1 - Hampel, Silke T1 - Understanding the chemistry of 2D rhodium trihalide solid solutions: tuning of optical properties and nanocrystal deposition T2 - 2D Materials N2 - In the search for novel 2D materials with potentially valuable properties, such as a tunable band gap for optoelectronic or catalytic applications, solid solutions hold the potential to significantly expand the inventory of available 2D nanomaterials. In this study, we present for the first time the synthesis of such 2D rhodium trihalide solid solutions: RhBrxCl3−x and RhBrxI3−x. We use thermodynamic simulations and simultaneous thermal analysis to predict conditions for their rational synthesis and to investigate suitable chemical vapor transport (CVT) parameters for these solid solutions. The evolution of the lattice parameters was investigated by powder x-ray diffraction, showing an isostructural relationship of the synthesized compounds and only minor deviation from Vegard's law. The optical band gap of these materials can be tuned in an energy range from 1.5 eV (RhCl3) to 1.2 eV (RhI3) by choosing the composition of the solid solution, while the samples also exhibit photoluminescence in similar energy ranges. Ultimately, the successful deposition of bulk as well as ultrathin 2D nanocrystals of RhBrxCl3−x by CVT from 925 °C to 850 °C is shown, where the composition of the deposited crystals is precisely controlled by the choice of the starting composition and the initial amount of material. The high quality of the obtained nanocrystals is confirmed by atomic force microscopy, high resolution transmission electron microscopy and selected area electron diffraction. For RhBrxI3−x, the CVT from 900 °C to 825 °C is more difficult and has only been practically demonstrated for an exemplary case. According to the observed properties, these novel solid solutions and nanocrystals show a great potential for an application in optoelectronic devices. KW - Crystal growth KW - Chemical vapor transport KW - Crystal structure KW - Thermodynamic modeling KW - 2D layered compounds KW - Halides Y1 - 2023 UR - https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/2053-1583/acd012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/2053-1583/acd012 SN - 2053-1583 VL - 10 IS - 3 SP - 1 EP - 12 ER -