Extended Data Fig. 3: SAED patterns of the freestanding Au/Bi/monolayer–MoS₂ and Au/Bi/amorphous carbon.

a, e, Schematics of the Au/Bi layer deposited directly on the monolayer (1L) MoS₂ (a) and amorphous carbon (a-carbon; e) in the TEM grid. b–d, SAED patterns of Au/Bi/1L–MoS₂ at three different locations. The [0001] zone axis of Bi is always observed in parallel to the electron beam throughout the whole sample. The diffraction spots of MoS₂ at 3.6 nm⁻¹ can be clearly identified. The in-plane rotations of MoS₂ with respect to the Bi (0001) plane are 30° (b), 4° (to the nearest Bi diffraction spots; c), and 8° (d). For most of the areas, Bi demonstrates homogeneous orientation, as shown in b and d, but polycrystalline areas can also be found, as shown in c. The selected-area aperture is 1 μm. f–h, The diffraction ring located at 3.0 nm⁻¹ is identified to be from Bi₂O₃ polycrystal, as confirmed from the atomic structure of Bi₂O₃ viewing at zone axes [110] (g), and its simulated diffraction pattern (h), demonstrating the diffraction pattern at 3.0 nm⁻¹.