Defect engineering of 2D monatomic-layer materials

Atomic-thick monolayer two-dimensional materials present advantageous properties compared to their bulk counterparts. The properties and behavior of these monolayers can be modified by introducing defects, namely defect engineering. In this paper, we review a group of common two-dimensional crystals, including graphene, graphyne, graphdiyne, graphn-yne, silicene, germanene, hexagonal boron nitride monolayers and MoS2 monolayers, focusing on the effect of the defect engineering on these two-dimensional monolayer materials. Defect engineering leads to the discovery of potentially exotic properties that make the field of two-dimensional crystals fertile for future investigations and emerging technological applications with precisely tailored properties. © World Scientific Publishing Company.