Semiconductor-to-metal surface reconstruction in copper selenide/copper heterostructures steered by photoinduced interlayer atom migration

Meiling Chen, Wenhao Liu, Pengcheng Ding, Fengwu Guo, Zhuo Li, Yanghan Chen, Wei Yi, Ye Sun (), Jianchen Lu, Lev Kantorovich and Miao Yu ()
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Meiling Chen: Harbin Institute of Technology
Wenhao Liu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Pengcheng Ding: Harbin Institute of Technology
Fengwu Guo: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Zhuo Li: Harbin Institute of Technology
Yanghan Chen: Harbin Institute of Technology
Wei Yi: Harbin Institute of Technology
Ye Sun: Harbin Institute of Technology
Jianchen Lu: Kunming University of Science and Technology
Lev Kantorovich: The Strand
Miao Yu: Harbin Institute of Technology

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: Abstract The photoinduced semiconductor-to-metal transition (PSMT) unveils crucial photodynamic mechanisms and holds great promise for information storage, sensing, optoelectronics, optical switches, etc. All previously reported PSMTs have occurred between two structural phases of the same material, lacking real-space evidence at the atomic or molecular level. Herein, we report atomic-scale observations of a photoinduced ‘face changing’: light irradiation transforms a semiconductor copper selenide (Cu2Se) surface layer on Cu(111) into a well-defined metallic Cu layer. Se atoms sink to form a new Cu2Se sublayer, while the original subsurface Cu atoms are lifted to the top layer. The Cu2Se-to-Cu transition barrier is significantly lower in the excited state compared to the ground state. Thermoactivation enables the reverse transition. The photoinduced Cu2Se-to-Cu and thermoactivated Cu-to-Cu2Se transitions are highly reversible. This work, which demonstrates PSMT between two distinct materials and photo-driven interlayer atom migration, unlocks an unconventional and intriguing route for PSMT and surface modification technologies.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-57012-4

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