XFab
"Xene Fabrication for a Two-dimensional Nanotechnology Platform"
An ERC-COG Project
XFab is an ERC CoG 2017 grant (no. 776621) to Alessandro Molle carried out in the Agrate Unit of the CNR-IMM from 2018 to 2023. X stands for Xenes, monoelemental 2D-materials beyond graphene made of X atoms (silicene, germanene, stanene, etc.). Fab means production, process standardization, and device integration of the Xenes. XFab activity bridges the epitaxy of Xenes with the development of process schemes enabling Xene integration into devices in a wealth of nanotechnology fields (electronics, photonics, energy, etc.). In February 2022, Alessandro Molle was awarded an ERC PoC grant as technology transfer spin-off from the XFab project.
See also the spin-off XMem project, an ERC Proof-of-Concept.
Spotlight
Bendable silicene membranes
Christian et al. drive us into the unprecedented world of a new fashion of atomically thin membranes where silicene is electrically responsive to mechanical solicitations and strain. Now published in Advanced Materials (2023), 35, 2211419
News
World's Top 2% Scientists' 2022 List
October 10, 2023
Alessandro within the 2022 World's Top 2% Scientist List released by Stanford University
after being included in the 2021 list.
From pennette-like tellurium to tellurene
September 16, 2023
Sara et al. show how tellurium can be grown by condensation driven physical vapour transport deposition so as to assume diverse morphologies, from pillars to pennette-like structures to 2d tellurene. See our accepted manuscript.
All-around encapsulation of silicene
August 15, 2023
Within the scope of the XMem project, we show how a substrate-free silicene can be durably stabilised. See more on Dhungana, Massett, et al., Nanoscale Horizons 2023
Silicene by interface engineering
April 12, 2023
In collaboration with Prof Fratesi and his group from Univ. Milan, we show that silicene can be tailored to be a single phase crystal by engineering the Ag(111) host surface with an atomic Sn coverage. See more on Achilli, Dhungana, et al, Nanoscale 2023.
Alessandro as the RSC 2022 Outstanding Reviewers
March 14, 2023
Alessandro Molle recognised as one of the Royal Society of Chemistry’s 2022 Outstanding Reviewers for journals Nanoscale Horizons and Nanoscale
Open Positions
Post-Doc fellow
Topic: Molecular Beam Epitaxy of Silicene in 2D Heterostructure
(see more details on the Job Openings page)
Duration: 18 months
Contact: Alessandro Molle
PhD Thesis
Topic: Molecular beam epitaxy of 2D elementary materials (Xenes)
Topic: Synthesis of interface engineered Xenes and in situ characterization (STM, Raman)
Contact: Alessandro Molle
Call for MSc Thesis
List of Topics:
Scanning tunneling microscopy investigation of Xenes grown by molecular beam epitaxy;
Molecular beam epitaxy of Xene layers and heterostructures;
Chemical vapor deposition of transition metal dichalcogenides for nanoelectronics;
Chemical vapor deposition of 2D materials for THz and far-IR applications;
Processing and nanofabrication of electronic and optoelectronic devices based on 2D materials;
Opto-thermo-electrical, chemical and structural characterization of 2D materials.
Staff work-team: Carlo Grazianetti, Christian Martella, Alessio Lamperti, Alessandro Molle
Contact: Alessandro Molle
Upcoming Events
Mon, Jun 26ManchesterJun 26, 2023, 9:00 AM – Jun 30, 2023, 5:00 PMManchester, Manchester, UK
Mon, Jun 26CambridgeJun 26, 2023, 8:00 AM – Jun 30, 2023, 5:00 PMCambridge, Cambridge, UK
Sun, Apr 02ObergurglApr 02, 2023, 12:00 PM – Apr 06, 2023, 12:00 PMObergurgl, 6456 Obergurgl, Austria
Contacts
CNR-IMM unit of Agrate Brianza,
via C. Olivetti 2, 20864 Agrate Brianza, IT
+39 0396032884