Article Flaw-size-dependent mechanical interlayer coupling and edge-reconstruction embrittlement in van der Waals materials

Zhigong Song ORCID ; Boyu Zhang ORCID ; Yingchao Yang ; Guanhui Gao ; Daiming Tang SAMURAI ORCID ; Qiyi Fang ; Youtian Zhang ; Bongki Shin ; Doug Steinbach ; Qing Ai ORCID ; Xuan Zhao ; Yimo Han ORCID ; Nitin P. Padture ORCID ; Brian W. Sheldon ORCID ; Takashi Taniguchi SAMURAI ORCID ; Kenji Watanabe SAMURAI ORCID ; Huajian Gao ORCID ; Jun Lou ORCID

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Zhigong Song, Boyu Zhang, Yingchao Yang, Guanhui Gao, Daiming Tang, Qiyi Fang, Youtian Zhang, Bongki Shin, Doug Steinbach, Qing Ai, Xuan Zhao, Yimo Han, Nitin P. Padture, Brian W. Sheldon, Takashi Taniguchi, Kenji Watanabe, Huajian Gao, Jun Lou. Flaw-size-dependent mechanical interlayer coupling and edge-reconstruction embrittlement in van der Waals materials. Nature Materials. 2025, 24 (10), 1554-1560. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-025-02194-x

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(abstract)

Van der Waals (vdW) materials consisting of two-dimensional (2D) building blocks have strong in-plane covalent bonding and weak interlayer interactions. While monolayer 2D materials exhibit impressive fracture resistance, as demonstrated in hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), preserving these remarkable properties in vdW materials remains a challenge. Here we reveal an anomalous mechanical interlayer coupling that involves interlayer-friction toughening and edge-reconstruction embrittlement during the fracture of multilayer h-BN. Both asynchronous and synchronous fracture modes and their flaw-size dependence are identified. Edge reconstruction in the synchronous fracture mode can eliminate a toughening mechanism induced by lattice asymmetry in monolayer h-BN, leading to embrittlement of the multilayer h-BN, while the asynchronous fracture mode results in greater fracture resistance. Such findings will provide fundamental guidelines for engineering interlayer interactions in vdW materials including heterostructures and layered architectures for better mechanical and functional performances.

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Keyword: van der Waals materials, Interlayer coupling, Flaw size

Date published: 2025-03-28

Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC

Journal:

  • Nature Materials (ISSN: 14761122) vol. 24 issue. 10 p. 1554-1560

Funding:

  • DOE | SC | Basic Energy Sciences DE-SC0018193
  • DOE | SC | Basic Energy Sciences DE-SC0018193
  • DOE | SC | Basic Energy Sciences DE-SC0018193
  • DOE | SC | Basic Energy Sciences DE-SC0018193
  • DOE | SC | Basic Energy Sciences DE-SC0018193
  • DOE | SC | Basic Energy Sciences DE-SC0018193
  • DOE | SC | Basic Energy Sciences DE-SC0018193
  • DOE | SC | Basic Energy Sciences DE-SC0018193
  • DOE | SC | Basic Energy Sciences DE-SC0018193
  • Agency for Science, Technology and Research

Manuscript type: Author's version (Submitted manuscript)

MDR DOI: https://doi.org/10.48505/nims.6003

First published URL: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-025-02194-x

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Updated at: 2025-12-13 08:30:16 +0900

Published on MDR: 2025-12-13 08:22:14 +0900

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