Nanoelectromechanics in van der Waals heterostructures

One of the greatest physicists Richard Feynman more than 50 years ago explored the immense possibilities of miniaturisation and presented them concisely in his talk "Plenty of Room at the Bottom". His vision becomes reality now - thanks to the advances in nanoscience and nanotechnology. The size of electronic compounds has been reduced exponentially over the past 40 years, which has brought us to a modern, globally interconnected world of mobile devices. Furthermore, miniaturisation of electrified machinery (microelectromechanical systems) has revolutionised the field of sensors and actuators. Further miniaturisation might lead to futuristic applications such as medical and industrial nanorobots in the long term. On a shorter time scale, disruptive technologies in the fields of wearable computers, self-powered devices, and smart materials are foreseen.

Although extremely appealing for both academia and industry, further progress in nanomachinery depends on solving the significant technological challenges, such as device reliability, motion control at the nanoscale, manufacturing scalability and so on. I am convinced that 2D materials and van der Waals heterostructures will revolutionize science and technology of nanoelectromechanical systems and will help to overcome these challenges.

This fellowship aims to deepen fundamental understanding of coupling of mechanical and electronic degrees of freedom at the nanoscale, and to design and fabricate electrified nanomachines using recently discovered graphene and a new class of synthetic materials - van der Waals heterostructures - layer-by-layer assembled stacks of individual atomic planes.

Van der Waals heterostructures are the ideal candidates for the next generation of nanoelectromechanical systems because (i) their mechanical strength and the crystal quality are exceptionally good; (ii) 2D materials are atomically thin, hence they represent an ultimate limit of miniaturisation and (iii) friction in this system can be controlled, leading at the right conditions to superlubricity - frictionless and wearless motion at high speed and so on.

With this fellowship a new research field in graphene/2D materials will be started at The University of Manchester. The research will be focused on coupling mechanical response of 2D materials with electrical excitation, and vice versa. The University of Manchester currently leads graphene and other 2D materials research worldwide, but the competition in this field is growing rapidly (especially in USA and China), thus making it more challenging for UK researchers to compete later. Starting this work as soon as possible provides the unique opportunity not to be missed. Moreover, close collaboration with National Graphene Institute at The University of Manchester will strengthen this research and will help with delivering the prototype devices and technologies to forthcoming industrial partners.

Academic Impact:
Understanding the interplay between electrical and mechanical degrees of freedom at the nanoscale is of tremendous importance for both fundamental science and scientific techniques, and this fellowship will have impact on both of these. Although theory has gradually been developed, from an experimental perspective little is known about the mechanical interaction between atomically thin layers of materials and so this fellowship will try to close this gap. More specifically, each work package (friction, piezoelectricity, electromagnetic and thermal actuation, functional devices) will add to our current understanding of a very complex and multidisciplinary field of nanoelectromechanical systems.

To achieve the scientific goals of this fellowship existing techniques of micromanipulation of 2D crystals and fabrication of van der Waals heterostructures will have to be improved, and new (compatible with electromechanical measurements) fabrication technology for van der Waals heterostructures, has yet to be developed. Therefore, techniques developed in this fellowship will be beneficial for researchers, working in the field of nanofabrication and experimental solid state physics, both in higher education and in industrial R&D organisations.

Economic Impacts:
There is great potential for miniaturisation of machinery - by making nanoscale electromechanical devices all technology sectors will benefit, especially in the areas of wearable computers, self-powered devices, smart materials, sensors and telecommunication. In a long term, even more futuristic applications like industrial and medical nanorobots could become possible.

Additionally, large companies (e.g. Samsung, Nokia, IBM, Intel, Huawei, etc.) have expressed their interest in graphene/2D materials-related research for industrial applications. As nanoelectromechanical switches and resonators developed during this fellowship are most likely to find niche applications in wearable computers and self-powered sensors, this will have an impact on the development of related industries and will lead to future collaborations with potential industry partners. Thus, this fellowship will contribute to the development of a robust and competitive supply base in support of the emerging graphene/2Dmaterials-using industry, help companies to explore the realistic potential of graphene and nanomaterials for new products that have potential to disrupt the marketplace and building on the UK government investment of over £90m in the graphene sector.

Personnel Impact:
An EPSRC fellowship will be a major step towards my scientific independence, as this will give me more freedom to realize my scientific ideas and to build an independent research portfolio and develop my own research group with a view towards a permanent academic position, from where I hope I will be teaching students and training researchers of the future and advancing the frontiers of science for many years to come.

Societal Impacts:
The fellowship project will form an ideal platform for the training of early career researchers: my proposed programme incorporates several workpackages suitable for PhD students and postdoctoral researchers, both of whom will gain training in experimental and characterization techniques, device development, as well as transferable skills training. Moreover, the two postdocs, hired for this fellowship, will gain invaluable expertise during their work on this project, which will help them on their own scientific career pathways and strengthen their case for promotion.