Epitaxial growth of transition metal dichalcogenides on cleaved faces of mica

We have grown ultrathin films of layered transition metal dichalcogenides (MoSe₂,NbSe₂) heteroepitaxially on cleaved faces of mica (muscovite). This is the first success in the heteroepitaxial growth between highly heterogeneous layered materials having different crystal structures and lattice constants that differ by as much as 58%. The lattice matching condition is greatly loosened in those cases because the growth proceeds with weak van der Waals forces between the substrate and the grown layer. This opens a new way to fabricate a heterostructure composed of many kinds of layered materials having various physical and chemical properties.