Rapid Drying Principle for High-speed, Pinhole-Less, Uniform Wet Deposition Protocols of Water-Dispersed 2D Materials

Abstract

Inexpensive, high-speed deposition techniques that ensure uniformity, scalability, wide applicability, and tunable thickness are crucial for the practical application of 2D materials. In this work, rapid drying is identified as a key mechanism for pioneering two high-speed wet deposition methods: hot dipping and air knife sweeping (AKS). Both techniques allow thickness control proportional to flake concentration, achieving tiled monolayers and pinhole-free coverage across the entire substrate, as long as evaporation outpaces flake diffusion. AKS prevents non-uniformity along substrate edges by eliminating contact line pinning. The achieved deposition speed of 0.21 m² min⁻¹ with AKS significantly surpasses traditional methods, enabling the equipment for large substrates > 1 m². Combined with the ultralow debonding force for mechanically susceptible flexible display production and short-circuit-proof nanometer-thin capacitors with capacitance comparable to commercial multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs), these new protocols showcase simple and swift solutions for manufacturing 2D materials-based nanodevices.