Two-Dimensional Material Nanophotonics

The emerging two-dimensional (2D) materials exhibit a wide range of electronic properties, ranging from insulating hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), semiconducting transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) such as molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) and tungsten diselenide (WSe2), to semi-metallic graphene. The plethora of 2D materials together with their heterostructures, which are free of the traditional “lattice mismatch” issue, brings new opportunities for exploring novel optical phenomena. In this review, we first discuss the optical properties and applications of a variety of 2D materials, followed by two different approaches to enhance their interactions with light: through their integration with external photonic structures and through their intrinsic polaritonic resonances. Finally, we cover a narrow bandgap layered material, black phosphorus, which serendipitously bridges the zero gap graphene and the relatively large-bandgap TMDCs such as MoS2 and WSe2. The combination of these materials and the approaches for enhancing light-matter interaction offers the promise of scientific discoveries and nanophotonics technologies across a wide range of electromagnetic spectrum.