Revolutionary Golden Semiconductor Breakthrough Surpasses Silicon Performance Records

Scientists in China have achieved a significant breakthrough in semiconductor technology by developing a new high-performance material that could potentially replace silicon in advanced electronic devices. Led by Professor Liu Kaihui from Peking University and collaborators from Renmin University, the team successfully fabricated large-area wafers of indium selenide (InSe), a two-dimensional material renowned for its excellent electrical properties. Published in the journal Science, this milestone addresses the challenge of scaling up InSe production, which had previously been limited to tiny flakes unsuitable for practical applications. The researchers introduced an innovative 'solid–liquid–solid' conversion technique: starting with a thin, disordered InSe layer on a sapphire substrate, they sealed it with pure indium metal and heated it to approximately 550°C in a controlled environment. During this process, the indium melts and reacts with the film, forming a uniform, crystalline InSe layer. The resulting 2-inch wafer boasts high purity, uniform thickness, and exceptional crystallinity, making it ideal for high-performance transistors. When assembled into transistor arrays, th...