Lithographically patterned metallic conduction in single-layer MoS2 via plasma processing

Tailoring the electrical transport properties of two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides can enable the formation of atomically thin circuits. In this work, cyclic hydrogen and oxygen plasma exposures are utilized to introduce defects and oxidize MoS2 in a controlled manner. This results in the formation of sub-stochiometric MoO3？x, which transforms the semiconducting behavior to metallic conduction. To demonstrate functionality, single flakes of MoS2 were lithographically oxidized using electron beam lithography and subsequent plasma exposures. This enabled the formation of atomically thin inverters from a single flake of MoS2, which represents an advancement toward atomically thin circuitry