Telesio Francesca, Passaglia Elisa, Cicogna Francesca, Costantino Federica, Serrano-Ruiz Manuel, Peruzzini Maurizio, Heun Stefan
NEST, Istituto Nanoscienze-CNR and Scuola Normale Superiore, Piazza San Silvestro 12, I-56127 Pisa, Italy.
Nanotechnology. 2018 Jul 20;29(29):295601. doi: 10.1088/1361-6528/aabd8d. Epub 2018 Apr 12.
Hybrid materials, containing a 2D filler embedded in a polymeric matrix, are an interesting platform for several applications, because of the variety of properties that the filler can impart to the polymer matrix when dispersed at the nanoscale. Moreover, novel properties could arise from the interaction between the two. Mostly the bulk properties of these materials have been studied so far, especially focusing on how the filler changes the polymeric matrix properties. Here we propose a complete change of perspective by using the hybrid nanocomposite material as a platform suitable to engineer the properties of the filler and to exploit its potential in the fabrication of devices. As a proof of concept of the versatility and the potential of the new method, we applied this approach to prepare black phosphorus (bP) nanocomposites through its dispersion in poly (methyl methacrylate). bP is a very interesting 2D material, whose application have so far been limited by its high reactivity to oxygen and water. In this respect, we show that electronic-grade bP flakes, already embedded in a protecting matrix since their exfoliation from the bulk material, are endowed with significantly increased stability and can be further processed into devices without degrading their properties.
