Inorganic Graphene Analogs

In the last four to five years, there has been a great resurgence of research on two-dimensional inorganic materials, partly because of the impetus received from graphene research. Unlike graphene, which is a gap-less material, most inorganic layered materials are semiconductors or insulators. Some of them, as exemplified by MoS2, exhibit unexpected properties, not unlike graphene, with possible applications. Thus, layered metal chalcogenides are being explored intensely, and MoS2is emerging as a wonder material. In this article, we present the synthesis and properties of nanosheets composing single or few layers of these fascinating materials. Besides metal chalcogenides, boron nitride, borocarbonitrides (BxCyNz), metal oxides, and metal-organic frameworks are also discussed.