Low-Energy Xe Ion Beam-Mediated Defect Engineering in Optical, Electronic, Structural, and Morphological Properties of Sputtered MoS₂ Thin Films

Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have attracted enormous research interest in light of their exceptional electro-optical and electrochemical characteristics. Ion implantation is an appealing trend for the tailoring of the significant properties of thin films for use in practical applications. In the present work we illustrate the influence of Xe ion implantation on different characteristics of MoS₂ thin films synthesized using the sputtering technique. This work offers an efficient approach for the tailoring of native defects in MoS₂ thin films. The thin films implanted with Xe ions exhibit distinct fluence ranges from 3 × 10¹⁴ to 3 × 10¹⁶ ions/cm². The surface morphology, crystal structure, and optical characteristics of the pristine and Xe ion-implanted samples were studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM), x-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-visible spectrometry, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The crystalline nature of the ion-irradiated thin films was altered under the influence of ion beam implantation. Ion beam treatment resulted in changes in the lattice strain of the nanostructured thin films. The indirect optical bandgap of ion-implanted samples increased with the increase in ion implantation fluence. The PL spectra displayed a redshift in the emission peak on account of bandgap tuning during ion implantation. Our results provide an understanding of the relationship between the tailored characteristics of the films and the induction of defects by ion beam implantation and also offer insight into the generation of defects in a controlled and precise manner.