Mechanical properties of freestanding monolayer MoS₂

The outstanding properties of graphene have captured researchers’ attention in two- dimensional (2D) materials with remarkable electrical, mechanical and optical attributes. However, without band-gap, graphene can’t satisfy the real application even it possesses high carrier mobilities. Moreover, other 2D materials especially transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have emerged with different band-gaps. As a representative of TMDs, monolayer MoS₂ possesses direct band-gap of 1.8 eV which opens the possibility of many optoelectronic applications. As the most important properties, mechanical properties play an important role in practical applications. However, experimental research about mechanical properties of MoS₂ is limited. Here, we developed an in situ platform to investigate mechanical properties of freestanding monolayer MoS₂. By applying a uniaxial load, the in situ tensile tests were carried by our platform. The elastic properties and failure mechanisms of MoS₂ were investigated. Our platform is also applicable to other 2D materials to explore their mechanical properties.