The integrated inplane growth of two dimensional materials with similar lattices, but distinct electrical properties, could provide a promising route to achieve integrated circuitry of atomic thickness. However, fabrication of edge specific GNR in the lattice of hBN still remains an enormous challenge for present approaches. Here we developed a two step growth method and successfully achieved sub 5 nm wide zigzag and armchair GNRs embedded in hBN, respectively. Further transport measurements reveal that the sub 7 nm wide zigzag GNRs exhibit openings of the band gap inversely proportional to their width, while narrow armchair GNRs exhibit some fluctuation in the bandgap width relationship.This integrated lateral growth of edge specific GNRs in hBN brings semiconducting building blocks to atomically thin layer, and will provide a promising route to achieve intricate nanoscale electrical circuits on high quality insulating hBN substrates.
@article{arxiv.2009.12822,
title = {Towards Chirality Control of Graphene Nanoribbons Embedded in Hexagonal Boron Nitride},
author = {Hui Shan Wang and Lingxiu Chen and Kenan Elibol and Li He and Haomin Wang and Chen Chen and Chengxin Jiang and Chen Li and Tianru Wu and Chun Xiao Cong and Timothy J. Pennycook and Giacomo Argentero and Daoli Zhang and Kenji Watanabe and Takashi Taniguchi and Wenya Wei and Qinghong Yuan and Jannik C. Meyer and Xiaoming Xie},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2009.12822},
year = {2020}
}