Enhancement of the E12g and A1g Raman modes and layer identification of 2H‐WS2 nanosheets with metal coatings

Abstract Raman spectroscopy in transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) helps determine their structural information and layer dependency. Because it is non‐destructive and fast, it is an archetypal spectroscopic technique to investigate the structure and defects in TMDCs. In our earlier study, we used a metal‐dielectric coating to enhance Raman signal of WS 2 because the Raman Spectra measured from WS 2 coated on the standard Si/SiO 2 was significantly lower. This metal‐dielectric coating allowed access to the otherwise unavailable E 1 2g and A 1g modes of WS 2 . In this study, we compare the Raman spectra of WS 2 on a Si/SiO 2 to that of metal layers (Au [200 nm] and Al [200 nm]). A significant enhancement in the Raman signal of 2‐3L WS 2 is observed for both the Au and Al coatings. Although 200 nm Au coating enhances the Raman Signal better than the 10 nm Au coating, it does not resolve the other signature vibrations other than E 1 2g and A 1g . Whereas, coating based on Al (200 nm) and Al (10 nm) both enhance the Raman signal of WS 2 . In the case of Al coating, we report well‐resolved vibrational modes such as the ones below <300 cm −1 in a few layered WS 2 . This enhancement allows us to quantify the number of layers and also investigate the presence of defects. Photoluminescence measurements on 2–3L and 15L WS 2 on Al (200 nm) confirm this.