Three-leaf dart-shaped single-crystal BN formation promoted by surface oxygen

Abstract

Two-dimensional hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) single crystals with various shapes have been synthesized by chemical vapor deposition over the past several years. Here, we report the formation of three-leaf dart (3LD)-shaped single crystals of h-BN on a Cu foil by atmospheric-pressure chemical vapor deposition. The leaves of the 3LD-shaped h-BN are as long as 18 μm, and their edges are smooth armchair on one side and stepped armchair on the other. Careful analysis revealed that surface oxygen plays an important role in the formation of the 3LD shape. Oxygen suppressed h-BN nucleation by passivating Cu surface active sites and lowered the edge attachment energy, which caused the growth kinetics to change to a diffusion-controlled mode. Show more