A small amount of fluorine transforms the white graphene from the edge body into a magnetic wide band gap semiconductor. Rice’s scientists said that the materials can be used in electronic devices in extreme environments.

Rice’s scientists said that the materials can be used in electronic devices in extreme environments. A proof-of-concept paper by Rice researchers confirmed the method of transforming two-dimensional hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) (ie, white graphene) from a marginal body into a semiconductor. They say that magnetism is an unexpected bonus. Boron oxide

Because the atomically thin material is a special heat conductor, researchers believe it may be useful for electronic products in high-temperature applications, and may even be a magnetic storage device. Rice scientist Pulickel Ajayan said: “h-BN is a stable body that is very useful commercially. It can be used in protective coatings and even in cosmetics because it absorbs ultraviolet light. Researchers have tried to modify its electronic structure. A lot of effort has been put in, but we don’t think it will become a semiconductor or a magnetic material. So this study is very different. No one has seen this behavior in h-BN.” The researchers found that adding fluorine to h-BN , And introduce defects into the atomic matrix, thereby reducing the band gap and making it a semiconductor. The band gap determines the conductivity of the material.

Chandra Sekhar Tiwary, a Rice postdoctoral researcher and co-author, said: "We see that when about 5% of fluorine is added, the band gap shrinks. As the fluorine continues to increase, the band gap becomes smaller, but only to a certain point. Accurate control Fluorine is what we need to deal with. We can get a range, but we have not yet achieved accurate control. Because the material is atomically thin, a reduction or increase in one atom will bring considerable changes. In the next set of experiments, we think Learn to adjust atoms accurately.” They confirmed that the tension exerted by adding fluorine atoms changes the "spins" of electrons in nitrogen atoms and affects their magnetic moments. These determine how atoms respond to the magnetic field like an invisible nanoscale compass. A response occurred.

Sruthi Radhakrishnan, Rice’s graduate student and lead author, said: “We see angular orientation rotation, which is very unusual for two-dimensional materials. Unlike alignment to form a ferromagnet or cancel each other out, the spins are randomly tilted to make a flat material Random storage of net magnetism. These ferromagnetic or antiferromagnetic storage can exist in the same h-BN sample, which makes them "frustrated magnets" in competing fields.

The researchers say that their simple and scalable method has potential applications in other 2-D materials. "Making new materials through nano-engineering is exactly what our research group focuses on.