Hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) is a layered two-dimensional material with properties that make it promising as a dielectric in various applications. We report the growth of h-BN films on Ni foils from elemental B and N using molecular beam epitaxy. The presence of crystalline h-BN over the entire substrate is confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. Atomic force microscopy is used to examine the morphology and continuity of the synthesized films. A scanning electron microscopy study of films obtained using shorter depositions offers insight into the nucleation and growth behavior of h-BN on the Ni substrate. The morphology of h-BN was found to evolve from dendritic, star-shaped islands to larger, smooth triangular ones with increasing growth temperature.
@article{arxiv.1501.06606,
title = {Synthesis of atomically thin hexagonal boron nitride films on nickel foils by molecular beam epitaxy},
author = {S. Nakhaie and J. M. Wofford and T. Schumann and U. Jahn and M. Ramsteiner and M. Hanke and J. M. J. Lopes and H. Riechert},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1501.06606},
year = {2015}
}