Functionalized Transition Metal Dichalcogenide-Based Nanomaterials for Biomedical Applications

Abstract

Layered materials have been studied for more than a century, but only after the recent seminal work on graphene, it seems feasible to realize the vast potential of these materials. Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs), a special class of two-dimensional (2D) materials, are transition metal atoms sandwiched between two layers of chalcogens. Semiconducting TMDCs possess an electronic band gap that increases with decreasing thicknesses. 2D TMDCs can be produced through both top-down and bottom-up methods. The top-down approach is subjected to the direct exfoliation of layered bulk crystals by applying different kinds of forces. Bottom-up techniques for growth of 2D TMDCs include chemical vapor deposition in which solid powders containing the elements present in the TMDC are thermally evaporated and undergo chemical reaction on a solid surface to form the desired TMDC layer in a furnace at high temperatures. Hence, there exists both great promise and additional work to be carried out on the functionalization of TMDCs to make it a truly viable nanomaterial for biomedical applications.