Correlating the three-dimensional atomic defects and electronic properties of two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides

Scanning atomic electron tomography is demonstrated to determine the 3D atomic positions and defects of Re-doped MoS2 monolayers and other 2D materials, providing picometre precision atomic coordinates that can be used as direct input to DFT to reveal more accurate electronic band structures of these systems. The electronic, optical and chemical properties of two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides strongly depend on their three-dimensional atomic structure and crystal defects. Using Re-doped MoS2 as a model system, here we present scanning atomic electron tomography as a method to determine three-dimensional atomic positions as well as positions of crystal defects such as dopants, vacancies and ripples with a precision down to 4 pm. We measure the three-dimensional bond distortion and local strain tensor induced by single dopants. By directly providing these experimental three-dimensional atomic coordinates to density functional theory, we obtain more accurate electronic band structures than derived from conventional density functional theory calculations that relies on relaxed three-dimensional atomic coordinates. We anticipate that scanning atomic electron tomography not only will be generally applicable to determine the three-dimensional atomic coordinates of two-dimensional materials, but also will enable ab initio calculations to better predict the physical, chemical and electronic properties of these materials.