Synthesis and characterization of large-area and continuous MoS₂ atomic layers by RF magnetron sputtering

In this article, we report layer-controlled, continuous and large-area molydenum sulfide (MoS₂) growth onto a SiO₂/Si substrate by RF sputtering combined with sulfurization. A two-step process was employed to synthesize MoS₂ films. In the first step, an atomically thin MoO₃ film was deposited by RF magnetron sputtering at 300 °C. Subsequently, the as-sputtered MoO₃ film was further subjected to post-annealing and sulfurization processes at 650 °C for 1 hour. It was observed that the number of layers of MoS₂ can be controlled by adjusting the sputtering time. The fabricated MoS₂ transistors exhibited high mobility values of ∼21 cm² V^-1 s^-1 (bilayer) and ∼25 cm² V^-1 s^-1 (trilayer), on/off ratios in the range of ∼10⁷ (bilayer) and 10⁴-10⁵ (trilayer), respectively. We believe that our proposed paradigm can start a new method for the growth of MoS₂ in future electronics and optoelectronics applications.