Date

Thursday 30 Jul 2026

Time

15:15 - 15:45

Location

BW006

Supervisor

Irene Groot

2nd reviewer

Katharina Doblhoff-Dier

Jury

Grégory F. Schneider

Liquid-metal-catalysed chemical vapor deposition (LMCat-CVD) is a promising technique for the growth of two-dimensional (2D) materials. Among 2D materials are many nitrides, such as hexagonal gallium nitride (h-GaN), a wide bandgap material with potential applications in optoelectronics. In this thesis, we use LMCat-CVD to grow nitrides on liquid Ga, liquid Cu and different Cu-Ga alloys. The growth was then characterized in situ by radiation mode optical microscopy (Rad-OM) and ex situ by Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The growth on Ga and Ga-rich alloys resulted in three-dimensional GaN, but tungsten nitrides grew on Cu-rich alloys, through diffusion of the W from the underlying foil through the liquid metal. A high coverage of well-ordered, hexagonally shaped ultrathin tungsten nitride crystals was achieved on pure Cu liquid metal catalysts (LMCats). These findings demonstrate the  importance of the LMCat composition on the grown material and highlight the potential of LMCat-CVD for the growth of large, ultrathin films.