A new fabrication method dramatically accelerates 2D semiconductor production, opening doors for next-generation chip manufacturing.
Chinese researchers have developed a wafer-scale growth method for two-dimensional (2D) semiconductors that operates nearly 1,000 times faster than existing techniques, marking a significant step toward industrial adoption of next-generation chip materials.
The breakthrough arrives as demand for high-performance, energy-efficient processors rises sharply due to artificial intelligence and large language model workloads. As traditional silicon scaling approaches physical limits, scientists are turning to atomically thin 2D semiconductors as potential successors for advanced transistor technology.
A key challenge in 2D semiconductor development has been the limited availability of stable and high-performance p-type materials required to pair with n-type semiconductors for transistor operation. This imbalance has slowed progress toward ultra-small chip nodes.
The research team addressed this issue by redesigning the conventional chemical vapour deposition process. Their method uses a liquid gold–tungsten bilayer substrate to enable controlled, wafer-scale growth of monolayer tungsten silicon nitride films with adjustable electrical properties.
The new technique dramatically improves manufacturing efficiency, increasing growth rates from extremely slow micrometre-scale formation over several hours to about 20 micrometres per minute. It also enables large single-crystal regions and film sizes reaching several centimetres, bringing scalable production closer to reality.
Beyond faster fabrication, the material demonstrates strong electrical performance, mechanical durability, thermal conductivity and chemical stability, making it suitable for advanced transistor applications.
The development is expected to accelerate commercialization of 2D semiconductor technologies for future CMOS integrated circuits. In addition to computing chips, the material could support applications in optoelectronics, sensors and bio-integrated electronic devices, expanding the potential impact of wafer-scale 2D materials manufacturing.
