Fig. 2: Microstructural characterization of Cd-MoS2.

a Atomic force microscopy (AFM) characterization of Cd-MoS2. b Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) characterization of Cd-MoS2. c Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) elemental mapping of Cd nanosheets with the corresponding high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF-STEM) image. Inset: scale bar, 500 nm. d The selected-area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern of the epitaxial Cd-MoS₂. e HAADF-STEM image of the Cd nanosheets, with the corresponding atomic-model illustration highlighted in purple. f HAADF-STEM image of the Cd (001)-MoS2 (001) contact. g Atomic resolution image obtained from the white frame in (f). Mo, S, and Cd atoms are marked, with the interplanar distance of the Cd (001) plane labeled as 2.62 Å. The interatomic distance between Mo and Cd is labeled as 4.84 Å. The vdW gap distance of Cd-S is 1.06 Å. EDS elemental mapping images of Cd (h), S (i), Mo (j), and Si (k) on a 300 nm SiO2 substrate.