Abstract (eng)
Black phosphorous (BP) is a two-dimensional material that has attracted a huge amount of interest due to its anisotropic structure and promising electronic, optical and mechanical properties. However, BP degrades rapidly under ambient conditions, which severely limits its usefulness in applications. In order to find degradation-mitigating strategies, it is important to understand the degradation mechanisms down to the atomic scale. In this study, BP samples were produced in an inert atmosphere, and introduced into the CANVAS ultra high vacuum system without being exposed to ambient conditions. As the samples were nonetheless severely contaminated by hydrocarbon compounds, several cleaning methods were tested. Additionally, the amorphization of few-layer BP under laser irradiation was observed. The degradation mechanisms are discussed and the role of chemical etching due to reactive oxygen species in the BP surface contamination is emphasised. To increase the stability of BP under the electron beam, BP-graphene heterostructures were also produced and analyzed. The heterostructures disintegrated significantly slower than pure BP, which makes it easier to study the properties of thin BP samples.