Breaking News: Scientists Successfully Fabricate Atomically Thin 2D Metal Sheets

BEIJING, CHINA - A groundbreaking team of scientists from Beijing and Dongguan City has made a major breakthrough in creating ultra-thin layers of metal atoms, revolutionizing the field of materials science. The research team successfully fabricated atomically thin 2D sheets of bismuth, gallium, tin, lead, and indium using a novel high-pressure technique.

The innovation utilizes a process where metal powder is melted between two layers of MoS₂-coated sapphire plates, resulting in the flattening of the metal into an ultra-thin sheet. The pressure applied reaches an astonishing 200 million Pa, yielding bismuth sheets only 6.3 Å thick - equivalent to just one atom deep.

The emergence of these 2D metals offers a plethora of novel properties and applications, including enhanced quantum confinement effects that alter energy levels of electrons, modulating electrical conductivity in response to external fields. Notably, the 2D metal exhibits nonlinear Hall effect generation under electric fields, an anomaly not observed in traditional 3D metals.

Furthermore, some 2D metal compounds display topological properties, which enable them to act as topological insulators, conducting only along their edges. Such unparalleled electrical behaviors have significant implications for various applications, including electronics and energy storage.

This remarkable achievement is expected to usher in a new era of materials innovation, paving the way for further research into the full potential of 2D metals.