Aixtron provides deposition system to EPFL for 2D materials research

Deposition equipment maker Aixtron SE of Herzogenrath, Germany says that Switzerland’s École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) has purchased a BM NOVO system. The versatile tool, which can produce virtually all variations of two-dimensional materials (2D) required for emerging optoelectronic applications, is dedicated to support EPFL’s research projects coordinated by professors Andras Kis and Aleksandra Radenovic.

The BM NOVO system uses a unique combination of plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) technology and metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) technology to enable the growth of high-quality 2D materials such as transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs), e.g. molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) or tungsten diselenide (WSe2).

TMDCs combine atomic-scale thickness with unique electrical, optical and mechanical properties, making it a potential material of choice for use in optoelectronic, electronic, energy storage, spintronic, sensing and even in DNA sequencing applications. Considering this wide range of capabilities, the new BM NOVO was developed to solve critical TMDCs deposition challenges while providing the reliability required to develop cutting-edge applications.

“Aixtron’s new BM NOVO system will provide the flexibility and reliability that are required to advance our research, which focuses on the investigation of electrical properties, fundamental physics and practical applications of 2D materials such as TMDCs,” comments Kis, a leading expert on 2D materials research.

“We are looking forward to the cooperation with Aixtron, as the company’s innovative new platform will support our research in the field of single molecule biophysics, which includes the further development of techniques and methodologies based on optical imaging, biosensing and single molecule manipulation,” says Radenovic, who leads EPFL’s research on 2D materials for biophysics.