Atomic Layer Deposition of Iron, Cobalt, and Nickel Chalcogenides: Progress and Outlook

Iron, cobalt, and nickel chalcogenides are a class of fascinating materials, which have many applications in cutting-edge technologies. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is a highly useful technique to fabricate thin film materials. Over the past few years, ALD of iron, cobalt, and nickel chalcogenides has been developing very rapidly, with many new deposition processes being developed and demonstrated for promising applications. To date, a number of chalcogenides, including FeSx, CoSx, NiSx, FexCo1–xSy, FeSe2, CoSe2, and NiSe2, have been successfully synthesized by thermal and/or plasma-assisted ALD, and studies on surface chemistry and film growth mechanisms have also been followed to understand the underlying ALD mechanisms. However, aside from numerous progresses, considerable scientific and technological gaps and challenges are still prominent in this area. In this perspective, we summarize the recent progress in the ALD of iron, cobalt, and nickel chalcogenides, from four aspects of precursors, processes and film properties, surface chemistry and growth mechanisms, and applications, and then present our perspective on the future of this ALD technology.