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Abstract 2D metal oxides (2DMOs) have recently emerged as a high‐performance class of ultrathin, wide bandgap materials offering exceptional electrical and optical properties for a wide area of device applications in energy, sensing, and display technologies. Liquid metal printing represents a thermodynamically advantageous strategy for synthesizing 2DMOs by a solvent‐free and vacuum‐free scalable method. Here, recent progress in the field of liquid metal printed 2D oxides is reviewed, considering how the physics of Cabrera‐Mott oxidation gives this rapid, low‐temperature process advantages over alternatives such as sol‐gel and nanoparticle processing. The growth, composition, and crystallinity of a burgeoning set of 1–3 nm thick liquid metal printed semiconducting, conducting, and dielectric oxides are analyzed that are uniquely suited for the fabrication of high‐performance flexible electronics. The advantages and limitations of these strategies are considered, highlighting opportunities to amplify the impact of 2DMO through large‐area printing, the design of doped metal alloys, stacking of 2DMO to electrostatically engineer new oxide heterostructures, and implementation of 2D oxide devices for gas sensing, photodetection, and neuromorphic computing.
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This content will become publicly available on April 1, 2026
Sub-nm kinetically controlled liquid metal printing of ternary antimony indium oxide transistors
Two-dimensional (2D) metal oxide semiconductors offer a superlative combination of high electron mobility and visible-range transparency uniquely suitable for flexible transparent electronics. Synthesis of these ultrathin (<3 nm) semiconductors by Cabrera-Mott oxidation of liquid metals could enable emerging device applications but requires the precise design of their electrostatics at the nanoscale. This study demonstrates sub-nanometer-level control over the thickness of semiconducting 2D antimony-doped indium oxide (AIO) by manipulating the kinetics of Cabrera-Mott oxidation through variable-speed liquid metal printing at plastic-compatible temperatures (175°C). By modulating both the growth kinetics and doping, we engineer the conductivity and crystallinity of AIO for integration in ultrathin channel transistors exhibiting exceptional steep turn-on, on-off ratios > 106 and an outstanding average mobility of 34.7 ± 12.9 cm2/Vs. This result shows the potential for kinetically controlling 2D oxide synthesis for various high-performance optoelectronic device applications.
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- PAR ID:
- 10604929
- Publisher / Repository:
- Cell Press
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Matter
- Volume:
- 8
- Issue:
- 4
- ISSN:
- 2590-2385
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 102003
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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