Selective deposition three ways: chemical bath deposition of metal sulfides on organic substrates

Novel and advanced materials and devices for sensors, actuators, molecular and organic electronics, photovoltaics have many exciting applications including in healthcare, electronics, and energy harvesting and generation. However, for these to become integrated into everyday practical devices there are many challenges to be addressed. Perhaps the largest challenge is to direct and control the deposition of materials from the molecular scale to the mesoscale. Further these materials, whether nano-objects or thin films must be integrated into complex functional structures in a predictable and controlled way. We describe our recent progress in synthesizing in situ with precise placement both nano-objects and films with controlled polytype, composition and/or dimensions. We illustrate this approach by discussing the solution-based deposition of 1) MoS₂ with controlled polytype; 2) thin films of copper sulfide films with controlled composition; and 3) the formation of CuS nanowires with precise surface placement. We exploit our understanding of the common features of these depositions to formulate design guidelines to control the in situ synthesis and placement of these complex materials with nanoscale precision, and to develop new faster, precise deposition processes.