Research Projects

The research group at IIT Gandhinagar has proposed a project to investigate the electrical properties of boron-based 2D nanosheets, known as XBenes. These nanosheets are exfoliated from layered transition metal diborides and exhibit varying degrees of chemical functionalization. The research aims to understand the fundamental electronic properties of these boron nanosheets, which could be used to develop FET-based sensors that utilize the rich chemistry of planar boron atoms. The project will be divided into three phases: synthesis of metal boride-derived nanosheets with varying degrees of chemical functionalization, conductivity measurements of these nanosheets with varied functionalization, and investigation of the I-V responses with temperature. The third phase will focus on optimizing processes to achieve desired electrical properties and developing chemical sensors that utilize the nanoscale access to the metal boride skeleton. The project aims to establish fundamental science in the domain of nanoscaled metal borides and advance applied science of nanoscale boron in the field of sensors. The group hopes that this project will not only establish fundamental science in the domain of nanoscaled metal borides but also advance applied science of nanoscale boron in the field of sensors.