Anomalous Insulator-Metal Transition in Boron Nitride-Graphene Hybrid Atomic Layers
Abstract
The study of two-dimensional (2D) electronic systems is of great fundamental significance in physics. Atomic layers containing hybridized domains of graphene and hexagonal boron nitride (h-BNC) constitute a new kind of disordered 2D electronic system. Magnetoelectric transportmeasurements performed at low temperature in vapor phase synthesized h-BNC atomic layers show a clear and anomalous transition from an insulating to a metallic behavior upon cooling. The observed insulator to metal transition can be modulated by electron and hole doping and by the application of an external magnetic field. These results supported by ab initio calculations suggest that this transition in h-BNC has distinctly different characteristics when compared to other 2D electron systems and is the result of the coexistence between two distinct mechanisms, namely, percolation through metallic graphene networks and hopping conduction between edge states on randomly distributed insulating h-BN domains.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 13, 2012
- Accession Number
- ADA585600
Entities
People
- Deep Jariwala
- Duncan J. Mowbray
- Kevin Storr
- Li Song
- Lijie Ci
- Luis Balicas
- Rodrigo B. Capaz
- Stefan Kurth
- Steven G Louie
- Ángel Rubio Secades
Organizations
- Rice University