van der Waals Epitaxial Growth of Atomically Thin 2D Metals on Dangling-Bond-Free WSe2 and WS2

2D metals have attracted considerable recent attention for their special physical properties, such as charge density waves, magnetism, and superconductivity. However, despite some recent efforts, the synthesis of ultrathin 2D metals nanosheets down to monolayer thickness remains a significant challenge. Herein, by using atomically flat 2D WSe2 or WS2 as the growth substrate, the synthesis of atomically thin 2D metallic MTe2 (M = V, Nb, Ta) single crystals with the thickness down to the monolayer regime and the creation of atomically thin MTe2/WSe2 (WS2) vertical heterojunctions is reported. Comparison with the growth on the SiO2/Si substrate under the same conditions reveals that the utilization of the dangling-bond-free WSe2 or WS2 as the van der Waals epitaxy substrates is crucial for the successful realization of atomically thin MTe2 (M = V, Nb, Ta) nanosheets. It is further shown that the epitaxial grown 2D metals can function as van der Waals contacts for 2D semiconductors with little interface damage and improved electronic performance. This study defines a robust van der Waals epitaxy pathway to ultrathin 2D metals, which is essential for fundamental studies and potential technological applications of this new class of materials at the 2D limit.