The highest quality hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) crystals are grown from molten solutions. For hBN crystal growth at atmospheric pressure, typically the solvent is a combination of two metals, one with a high boron solubility and the other to promote nitrogen solubility. In this study, we demonstrate that high-quality hBN crystals can be grown at atmospheric pressure using pure iron as a flux. The ability to produce excellent-quality hBN crystals using pure iron as a solvent is unexpected, given its low solubility for nitrogen. The properties of crystals produced with this flux matched the best values ever reported for hBN: a narrow Raman E2g vibration peak (7.6 cm–1) and strong phonon-assisted peaks in the photoluminescence spectra. To further test their quality, the hBN crytals were used as a substrate for WSe2 epitaxy. WSe2 was deposited with a low nucleation density, indicating the low defect density of the hBN. Lastly, the carrier tunneling through our hBN thin layers (3.5 nm) follows the Fowler–Nordheim model, with a barrier height of 3.7 eV, demonstrating hBN’s superior electrical insulating properties. This ability to produce high-quality hBN crystals in such a simple, environmentally friendly and economical process will advance two-dimensional material research by enabling integrated devices.

We report a study of polymorphic boron nitride samples. We interpret the photoluminescence line at 6.032±0.005 eV, that can be recorded at 8K in sp2-bonded boron nitride, as being the signature of the excitonic fundamental bandgap of the Bernal (or graphitic) boron nitride polymorph (bBN). This is determined by advanced photoluminescence measurements combined with x-ray characterizations on pure hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) and on polymorphic crystal samples, later compared with the theoretical predictions of Lorenzo Sponza, et al., Physical Review B 98, 125206 (2018). The overall picture is consistent with a direct excitonic fundamental bandgap of the Bernal (or graphitic) polymorph of boron nitride. This value dXb = 6.032±0.005 eV is higher than the indirect bandgap of hBN (iXh =5.955±0.005 eV).

Planar UV-C LEDs still suffer from low efficiency, mainly due to substrate crystalline quality, p doped conductivity and extraction efficiency. One possible way to overcome partly these issues is to realize the whole UV structure on AlGaN pyramids by selective area growth in order to benefit from the advantages of such structures, i.e. the dislocation filtering and the semi polar planes. We present here a detailed study about the epitaxy of AlGaN nano-sized pyramids by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE) on patterned templates presenting different holes apertures and pitches as 1.5 µm and 4 µm or 100 nm and 250 nm respectively. While increasing the Al content, their height decreases while the thickness of the deposition on the mask increases whatever the design of the mask. Those changes of the pyramid shapes and deposition are directly linked to the properties of Al adatoms, i.e. low Al diffusion length. Using the conventional growth mode for the epitaxy of those pyramids did not permit the incorporation of Al from the base of the pyramids to their truncated apex. Its presence was concentrated on the edges and top of the pyramids. On the contrary, a pulsed growth mode, coupled with a strongly reduced pitch, allowed an incorporation of Al since the base of the nanopyramid, and a decrease of the deposition height on the mask. These results can be explained by the desorption of Ga species, due to the presence of H2 in the reactor chamber during the step without the metal precursors, leading to a higher Al/Ga ratio. It is even enhanced inside the holes by the reduced pitch.

The energy and its entire related infrastructure are the main drivers for a economic development andforensuringagoodlevelofemployment.Aspartofaglobalstudyaboutinternationalenergysector,weevaluate here the impact of technological changes on the state of the energy infrastructure. This studyincludes a detailed analysis of the global challenges facing the energy industry. We propose scenariosfor the development of a modernized energy infrastructure with an assessment of the entire energysystem. Our evaluation indicators are chosen in terms of the reliability of the energy infrastructure, ofits quality, of the accidents that may happen and of the consequent environmental risks. This study isparticularly adapted for forecasting the necessary measures (of technical nature, of governance kind)that have to be implemented to reduce the acceleration of the infrastructure deterioration rate. Ourresults reveal that the use of digital and information technologies has many positive impacts on thedevelopment and on the control of an efficient consumption of energy. In addition, our predictions,due to the further modernization of the energy sector, can contribute and help in the creation of preconditions that will be highly stimulating and profitable to the growth of investments in the energy infrastructure.

AlGaN based light emitting diodes (LEDs) will play a key role for the development of applications in the ultra-violet (UV). In the UVB region (280–320 nm), phototherapy and plant lighting are among the targeted uses. However, UVB LED performances still need to be improved to reach commercial markets. In particular, the design and the fabrication process of the active region are central elements that affect the LED internal quantum efficiency (IQE). We propose the use of nanometer-sized epitaxial islands (i.e., so called quantum dots (QDs)) to enhance the carrier localization and improve the IQE of molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) grown UVB LEDs using sapphire substrates with thin sub-μm AlN templates. Taking advantage of the epitaxial stress, AlGaN QDs with nanometer-sized (≤10 nm) lateral and vertical dimensions have been grown by MBE. The IQE of the QDs has been deduced from temperature dependent and time resolved photoluminescence measurements. Room temperature IQE values around 5 to 10% have been found in the 290–320 nm range. QD-based UVB LEDs were then fabricated and characterized by electrical and electroluminescence measurements. On-wafer measurements showed optical powers up to 0.25 mW with external quantum efficiency (EQE) values around 0.1% in the 305–320 nm range.

Hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) is attracting tremendous interest as an essential component in van der Waals heterostructures due to its ability to provide weakly interacting interfaces and because of its large bandgap. Although most of theoretical calculations yield the standard AA′ stacking for few-layer hBN, the exact determination of its structural and electronic properties remains unrevealed to date. Here, we provide the direct observation of structural and electronic transitions in few layers of isotopically pure exfoliated h11BN flakes. Our nanoscopic angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy measurements combined with density-functional theory calculations indicate that the stacking and the band structure can be strongly affected by the thickness of h11BN. Hence, we show that hBN presents an AA′ stacking in its bulk form and another more exotic stacking for three and four layers. Our findings open perspectives in understanding and controlling the stackings in hBN, which could be of great interest for optoelectronic applications.

Hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) is an important insulator that is incorporated into numerous 2D electronic, optoelectronic, and photonic devices, whereas natural hBN is a mixture of 20% 10B and 80% 11B isotopes, and monoisotopic hBN is a variant with just a single boron isotope, either 10B or 11B. Consequently, monoisotopic hBN has a higher thermal conductivity and a stronger neutron absorption (in the case of h10BN), making it superior for neutron detectors, heat management materials in nano flexible electronic devices, and phonon polariton-based nanophotonics. Here we synthesized approximately monoisotopic hBN using boron powder containing a single boron isotope and nitrogen, and grew single crystals from a Fe–Cr metal flux at atmospheric pressure. Narrow Raman peaks from the shear (r1.3 cm