Water-based, large-scale transfer of 2D materials grown on sapphire substrates

Water-based, large-scale transfer of 2D materials grown on sapphire substrates | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Water-based, large-scale transfer of 2D materials grown on sapphire substrates Nico Rademacher, Lukas Völkel, Eros Reato, Martin Otto, Simonas Krotkus, and 8 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7544328/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 20 Apr, 2026 Read the published version in npj 2D Materials and Applications → Version 1 posted 9 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Two-dimensional materials (2DMs) hold significant potential for future electronics, as demonstrated by high-performing devices for sensing, optics, and electronics. However, scalable growth techniques such as metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) typically require high temperatures, which limit their integration with conventional semiconductor processes. Therefore, reliable transfer processes from crystalline, low-contamination growth substrates such as sapphire are essential. Existing methods using chemicals such as potassium hydroxide (KOH) have potential quality issues and require manual handling and enhanced safety precautions. Here, we introduce a deionized water-based, frame-assisted, large-scale transfer method for two widely used two-dimensional materials, molybdenum disulfide (MoS 2 ) and hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN). We demonstrate the scalability of our process with the transfer of MoS 2 from a 100 mm diameter sapphire wafer. The material quality was verified as-grown and after transfer via atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The data show less compressive strain levels and insignificant changes in the doping or contamination of 2DMs after transfer. Physical sciences/Chemistry Physical sciences/Materials science Physical sciences/Nanoscience and technology Physical sciences/Optics and photonics 2D materials wet transfer delamination sapphire Raman spectroscopy Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Introduction High-performance proof-of-concept devices based on two-dimensional materials (2DMs) show great potential for future semiconductor applications in sensing, optoelectronics, and electronics [ 1 – 7 ]. However, this potential may remain elusive unless 2DMs can be integrated into current semiconductor manufacturing process flows. State-of-the-art 2DM growth with scalable techniques such as metal‒organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) is typically not compatible with conventional complementary metal‒oxide‒semiconductor (CMOS) processes because of high growth temperatures (> 400°C) [ 8 ]. Although several groups have recently reported promising approaches to lower the temperature to the desired range [ 9 , 10 ], layer transfer remains a promising alternative option, i.e., delaminating the material from the high-temperature growth substrate before bonding it to a target substrate. Sapphire is often used as a growth substrate because of its crystalline nature, chemical inertness, high melting point (2040°C), good thermal conductivity (> 10 W/mK), and controllability of the crystal orientation by a miscut angle (often 0.2°) [ 11 – 13 ]. Sapphire is also widely used as an epitaxial substrate in the III-V semiconductor industry and, hence, is readily available in standardized wafer formats with sizes of up to 12 inches [ 11 , 14 ]. 2DM transfer processes from sapphire typically involve the use of chemicals such as potassium hydroxide (KOH). They rely on the skilled handling of the 2DM during transfer (“fishing transfer”) [ 15 – 18 ], with three main steps. First, a protective polymer is spin-coated on top of the 2DM. Second, the 2DM is detached from the growth substrate by holding it manually into a KOH or similar solution at an angle. This step is prone to failure because the researcher must manually maintain the right angle for an extended period. Being close to chemicals also poses a hazard. Third, after the 2DM is detached, the target substrate is submerged in the solution to “fish” out the 2DM film. This is again hazardous and can lead to folding of the 2DM film. Additionally, 2DMs are sensitive to gas-phase and liquid-phase chemicals [ 19 – 21 ]. For example, KOH can increase the polycrystallinity of the 2DM molybdenum disulfide (MoS 2 ) [ 16 ]. This indicates that certain combinations of chemicals and 2DMs should be avoided. Here, we present a large-scale transfer method for two widely used 2DMs grown on sapphire: MoS 2 and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN). The transfer utilizes deionized (DI) water and a supporting frame for easier delamination and handling of the 2DM films. The absence of acids or bases eliminates their impact on the 2DMs and the hazards of handling them, while the frame stabilizes the fragile 2D films during transfer. Additionally, DI water is environmentally friendly and abundant. We verified the quality of our transfer by atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and statistical Raman spectroscopy of the as-grown and transferred materials. Experiment The 2D materials were grown via MOCVD on sapphire substrates in an AIXTRON cold-wall 2D R&D Close Coupled Showerhead (CSS®) reactor in 19×2” and 5×4” wafer configurations. We first developed a transfer process for cm-sized samples before scaling it to 100 mm wafers. First, polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) 950k A6 was spin-coated onto the 2DMs to form an approximately 500 nm thick protection and support layer (see Fig. 1 a, top). Second, the 2” wafers were cut with a diamond scriber to the desired size. The support frame was prepared from blue dicing tape 1008R (70 µm polyvinyl chloride with a 10 µm acrylic adhesive layer) and surrounding plastic foil (commercially available printer foil, AVERY Zweckform GmbH) (see Fig. 1 a, middle). The hole in the blue tape was smaller than the sapphire samples to attach the frame to the sapphire/2DM/PMMA stack (see Fig. 1 a, bottom). The framed sample was then fixed with double-sided tape on a polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG) plastic cube with a defined surface angle of 10° inside a glass beaker (Figs. 1 b, c, at the top). This angle was empirically determined to be optimal for 1.5 cm × 1.5 cm samples. We then filled the glass beaker with DI water until the water surface reached the sample. The surface tension of the DI water, supported by the hydrophobic behavior of the dicing tape, caused the frame to float, transferring the surface tension force through the frame to the 2DM/PMMA stack (Figs. 1 b and 1 c, middle). The water eventually intercalated into the sapphire-2DM van der Waals gap, supported by the upward force of the frame, delaminating the 2DM from the sapphire. During delamination, we gradually filled the beaker with more water until the frame with the PMMA/2DM stack floated completely (Figs. 1 b and 1 c, bottom). The process time ranged from a few minutes to approximately half an hour, depending on the adhesion force between the 2DMs and the sapphire. The absence of bases or acids allows transfer without further decontamination steps. Our target substrates were 2 × 2 cm silicon chips with 300 nm thermal silicon dioxide (SiO 2 ). A drop of DI water was placed onto the silicon chips. The frame with the 2DM was lifted from the DI water using tweezers, holding only the frame. Then, the 2DM was lowered onto the DI water drop, to which it adhered. This also flattened it upon contact, preventing the formation of cracks and wrinkles. The samples were dried at room temperature under laminar flow for one day. The frames were subsequently cut with a scalpel and removed. The PMMA/2DM stack remained on the target substrates, which were heated to 150°C for 10 minutes to remove residual water and increase the adhesion of the 2DMs [ 22 – 24 ]. Finally, the samples were placed in acetone for 3 hours, rinsed in IPA, and heated under vacuum to 300°C for 2 hours to remove the PMMA. Optical microscope images of cm-scale h-BN and MoS 2 transferred onto 2 cm × 2 cm Si/SiO 2 chips are shown in Figs. 1 e and 1 f, respectively. Each image consists of 24 single microscope images stitched together, which leads to regular horizontal and vertical features, i.e., artifacts. Results and Discussion We assessed the qualities of the hBN and MoS 2 materials as-grown and after transfer via atomic force microscopy (AFM), Raman spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). AFM was used in tapping mode to measure the surface topography of the materials. Raman spectroscopy can provide information on the layer number, defects, strain, and doping of 2DMs [25]. Since the Raman signal of hBN is weaker than that of MoS 2 , we used a higher laser power and conducted fewer measurements for the former. We recorded 100 and 900 individual Raman spectra for hBN and MoS 2 , respectively, over a 10 µm × 10 µm area on both the as-grown and transferred materials. We used a laser with a wavelength of λ = 532 nm at powers of 20 mW (hBN) and 1 mW (MoS 2 ) and an 1800 g/mm grating, resulting in a resolution of 0.3 cm ‑1 . The characteristic Raman peaks in every spectrum were fitted with Lorentz functions [26]. Additionally, we performed photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy on both the as-grown and transferred MoS 2 . hBN An AFM topography scan of the as-grown hBN revealed steps in the sapphire growth substrate formed at high temperatures (Fig. 2 a), in line with a report in the literature [27]. In addition, wrinkles and particles are visible. After transfer, the hBN appears smoother, which we attribute to the low RMS roughness of 360 pm of the thermally grown SiO 2 substrate (Fig. 2 b). Wrinkles with the same periodicity as in the as-grown material vanish partially, possibly due to the release of intrinsic strain upon substrate change [28]. The intrinsic strain in CVD hBN is typically induced when the growth wafer is cooled to room temperature due to different thermal expansion coefficients of hBN and sapphire. In contrast, wrinkles with a greater periodicity appear, which were likely formed during material transfer. The particle density remains unchanged. The Raman spectra of the as-grown and transferred hBN (Fig. 2 c) both reveal the characteristic E 2g peak at ~ 1368 cm ‑1 [29]. An additional small peak appears at ~ 1450 cm ‑1 after transfer, identified as the 3TO peak from the silicon substrate [30]. The statistical Raman analysis in Figs. 2 d and 2 e reveals a redshift of the peak position from 1368 cm ‑1 to 1367 cm ‑1 after transfer. Moreover, the FWHM decreased from 26.7 cm ‑1 to 23 cm ‑1 . The peak position of the as-grown material corresponds to mono- or bilayer hBN, which contradicts the 14 ± 7 layers measured via AFM after transfer (compare Figs. S1 and S2 in the supporting information) and the thickness of 4.6 nm extracted from TEM images (Fig. 2 g, h). We attribute this peak position to the intrinsic strain in the material already observed as wrinkles in the AFM scan in Fig. 2 a, which can easily lead to a slight redshift of the peak position [31]. After transfer, the peak position of 1367 cm ‑1 is closer to the bulk value of 1366 cm ‑1 . The release of intrinsic stress can also explain the decrease in the FWHM after transfer [32]. Doping or defects typically lead to an increase in the FWHM [33]. Thus, we conclude that our transfer process increases the quality in terms of the FWHM of the Raman signal. Wrinkles on the hBN surface are also visible in the SEM image after transfer (Fig. 2 f) with the same periodicity as those observed in the AFM measurement (Fig. 2 b). They appear as bright lines against a gray background. Dirt or PMMA residues appear as small bright spots within the image. These bright spots are only faintly visible in the SEM image because of their low particle density and small size, typically a few tens of nanometers, which supports the results of the AFM measurement in Fig. 2 b. We performed high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) on cross sections of both the as-grown (Fig. 2 g) and the transferred hBN (Fig. 2 h) samples to measure the thickness with atomic resolution and clarify the contradictory AFM thickness and Raman measurements discussed earlier. Both samples were encapsulated in evaporated SiO 2 prior to lamella preparation to protect the hBN. In Fig. 2 g, the layered structure of the hBN (green) is clearly visible, positioned between the crystalline Al 2 O 3 (orange) and the protective SiO 2 (blue). An amorphous layer between the hBN and the crystalline Al 2 O 3 is visible, which is likely amorphized Al 2 O 3 [34] or an aluminum-nitride compound formed during the growth process [35]. We measure a thickness of the as-grown hBN of 4.59 nm, consistent with our AFM thickness measurement after transfer (see supporting information Figs. S1 and S2). Thus, we conclude that the Raman peak shift of the as-grown hBN at ~ 1368 cm ‑1 is indeed due to intrinsic strain. In Fig. 2 h, the transferred hBN (green) is sandwiched between the SiO 2 of the target substrate and the protective SiO 2 (blue). The layered structure of the hBN is preserved, and no significant defects are visible. HRTEM revealed no PMMA or other contaminants at the interfaces of the hBN. Notably, we measured the same hBN thickness of 4.6 nm as that of the as-grown material. Overall, the HRTEM analysis revealed no significant degradation or material loss during the transfer process. MoS AFM scans in Figs. 3 a and 3 b show the nanocrystallinity of MoS 2 . They also reveal the presence of contamination particles (bright spots) and vertical nanosheets (bright lines), a typical byproduct of thick MoS 2 growth [ 36 ]. The nanocrystalline structure of MoS₂ remained after transfer, and the number of particles increased slightly. The Raman analysis results as-grown and after transfer are shown in Figs. 3 c-f. Two exemplary spectra as-grown and after transfer (Fig. 3 c) reveal the characteristic E 1 2g and A 1g peaks of MoS 2 at 383 cm ‑1 and 408 cm ‑1 , respectively [ 37 ]. The spectrum after transfer also shows the characteristic peak of the silicon substrate at 520 cm ‑1 . Histograms of the Raman peak positions and full width at half maximum (FWHM) values from MoS 2 as-grown (ag) and after transfer (at) are shown in Figs. 3 d and 3 e. A Gaussian distribution function fitted to the histograms revealed a slight redshift of both the E 1 2g and A 1g peaks (Fig. 3 d) by approximately 2 cm ‑1 and 1.5 cm ‑1 , respectively. The FWHM of the E 1 2g peak increased from 3.5 cm ‑1 to 3.7 cm ‑1 after transfer. In contrast, the FWHM of the A 1g peak decreased from 3.6 cm ‑1 to 3.5 cm ‑1 (compare Fig. 3 e). These changes lie within the error margins of our measurement setup (0.41 cm‑1 for the FWHM calculation; see supporting information section S1), and we conclude that there is no detectable change due to transfer. The intensity ratio of the A 1g peak to the E 1 2g peak increases from 1.57 to 2.03 after transfer, or 28.4%. The photoluminescence (PL) data as-grown and after transfer in Fig. 3 g show a slight blueshift of the excitonic A and B peaks. The B peak is more pronounced after transfer than during the measurement of the as-grown material. The shift in the characteristic peak positions in the Raman and PL spectra and the increase in the I(A 1g )/I(E 12g ) intensity ratio indicate a change in the material properties due to transfer. In MoS 2 , the number of layers, material strain, doping, and defects influence the characteristic peak positions [ 25 , 37 , 38 ]. We measured a thickness of 7.1 ± 1.4 nm of the MoS 2 after transfer via AFM at the edge of a transferred film (Figs. S3 and S4 in the supporting information), which corresponds to 11 ± 2 layers [ 39 ]. The extracted characteristic peak positions and the I(E 1 2g )/I(A 1g ) ratio of 0.5 support the finding of the AFM edge scan, as it indicates bulk material behavior [ 38 ]. The Raman peaks are influenced by the number of layers only up to ~ seven layers, whereas they converge to bulk material behavior for thicker materials [ 38 ]. Therefore, we do not expect any influence of a possible change in the number of MoS 2 layers on the Raman signals. The redshift of the two peaks after transfer indicates an increase in the tensile biaxial strain inside the material [ 25 , 40 – 42 ]. An increase in the I(A 1g )/I(E 1 2g ) ratio indicates either a decrease in the biaxial compression strain or tensile strain [ 43 ]. One potential explanation for our findings is that the initial compression strain of the as-grown material is partially released in the transferred material. The shift of the A peak in the PL spectrum supports a change in the intrinsic strain of the material [ 41 ]. The doping of a material with excess charge influences the A 1g peak position and FWHM [ 37 ], which we do not observe here. Our PL signal reveals less quenching of the B peak and a blueshift of the A peak, indicating less n-doping after transfer. We attribute this to the substrate change from Al 2 O 3 (growth substrate) to SiO 2 (target substrate). Al 2 O 3 in the vicinity of MoS 2 often leads to n-type doping because of positive fixed charges at the Al 2 O 3 interface [ 44 ]. These changes manifest as a redshift of the A peak and quenching of the B peak in the PL signal [ 45 , 46 ]. The absence of Al 2 O 3 after transfer leads to the opposite behavior of the PL signal. The characteristic Raman peak positions are also influenced by lattice defects, i.e., an increase in the defect density leads to a redshift of the E 1 2g peak and a (comparably smaller) blueshift of the A 1g peak [ 25 ]. At the same time, the FWHM of the peaks increases [ 25 ]. We exclude a significant increase in the defect density because there is no blueshift of the A 1g peak and no significant increase in the FWHM of the peaks. The SEM image of the transferred MoS 2 in Fig. 3 h confirms the presence of contamination particles (bright spots) and vertical growth walls (lines), which are also visible in the AFM data. We did not observe macroscopic polymer residues or cracks. In summary, the analysis of the Raman and PL spectra revealed no significant degradation in material quality but a decrease in compressive strain after transfer. Notably, the reduction in compressive strain aligns with the results of the hBN transfer. We observed a slight increase in the number of particles on the transferred film in the AFM scans, likely due to PMMA contamination. Scalability We demonstrated the scalability of the method through the wafer-scale transfer of MoS 2 grown on a 100 mm sapphire wafer. The wafer was prepared like the samples: first, an approximately 500 nm thick PMMA film was spin-coated as a supporting film. Second, a round-shaped frame was prepared (see Fig. 4a). The framed wafer was fixed with double-sided tape onto a PETG socket placed on the ground of a 20 cm × 30 cm plastic tub. We used a round socket with a diameter of 60 mm and an angle of 5° instead of 10° because of the larger size of the MoS 2 wafer. Figure 4 100 mm MoS 2 wafer transfer and corresponding material analysis as and after transfer. a) Photograph taken during the delamination process. The dashed line indicates the propagation line of delamination from the sapphire substrate. b) Photograph of delaminated MoS 2 floating on DI water. The sapphire substrate can be seen remaining on the socket. c) Photograph of transferred MoS 2 on an oxidized 150 mm Si wafer. d) AFM measurement of the as-grown material. e) AFM measurement after transfer. f) Colormap of the characteristic A 1g Raman peak position after transfer of a 45 mm × 45 mm area. g) Histograms of the E 1 2g and A 1g peak positions of MoS 2 as-grown (ag, blue) and after transfer (at, red). h) Histograms of the FWHMs of the Raman peaks as-grown and after transfer. i) Histograms of the respective I(A 1g )/I(E 1 2g ) intensity ratios. The delamination of MoS 2 was carried out in the same manner as for the smaller samples. Photographs of different stages of transfer are presented in Figs. 4a–c. In Fig. 4a, approximately half of the MoS 2 is detached from the growth substrate, as visible by a different reflection of the light on the wafer in the lower half compared with that in the upper half. The white dashed line indicates the propagation line of delamination from the growth substrate. Once MoS 2 was completely detached from the growth substrate, it floated on the water surface (Fig. 4b). The wet transfer of MoS 2 differs at this point from that of the small samples, as it is too unstable to be safely removed from the water. Instead, we used a “fishing method”: the target substrate, a Si wafer with 300 nm thermally oxidized SiO 2 , was submerged in the water, moved below the MoS 2 /PMMA stack, and carefully extracted from the DI water at an angle, “fishing” the stack onto the SiO 2 surface. The frame helped to handle and stabilize the 2DM/PMMA stack on the water surface. The transferred material subsequently underwent the same process of drying, PMMA removal, and annealing as the smaller samples did. Raman and AFM measurements were taken as-grown and after transfer. The results are shown in Figs. 4d-i. An AFM scan of a 2 µm × 2 µm area of the as-grown material (Fig. 4d) reveals many vertical nanosheets that likely formed during material growth [ 36 ]. These are visible as bright lines in the AFM image. The vertical nanosheets are thicker (~ 90 nm vs. ~20 nm) and higher (~ 8 nm vs. ~30 nm) compared to the MoS 2 used for the cm-scale transfer (Fig. 3 a) due to different growth processes. A comparison of the AFM measurements as-grown (Fig. 4d) and after (Fig. 4e) the transfer indicates a lower density of vertical nanosheets after the transfer, likely because of the different measurement positions before and after the transfer. More importantly, no contamination or cracks are visible after transfer. Figure 4f shows a color map of the A 1g peak positions after MoS 2 transfer of 60 × 60 Raman spectra over an area of 45 mm × 45 mm, exhibiting a largely homogeneous region with a few missing spots (dark blue and yellow pixels in the center) where no Raman signal of the MoS 2 could be observed. A color map of the E 1 2g peak position can be found in the supporting information Fig. S5c. Notably, this color map also contains missing spots that are not at the same positions as those in Fig. 4f. Thus, some of the missing spots may arise from fitting failures and some may arise from defects in the material introduced during transfer. However, with only ~ 10 missing pixels out of 3600, the proven MoS₂ coverage remains high at approximately 99.7%. The corresponding large-area Raman scans of the as-grown material can be found in the supporting information Figs. S5a and S5b. Figures 4g-i show histograms of the peak positions, the FWHM, and the intensity ratio of the characteristic E 1 2g and A 1g peaks as-grown and after transfer. The results are similar to the results of the MoS 2 transfer of the smaller samples (Figs. 3 d-f). A redshift of the E 1 2g and A 1g peaks by 0.5 cm ‑1 and 0.7 cm ‑1 , respectively, is observed due to the transfer (Fig. 4g). The FWHMs of the E 1 2g and A 1g peaks decrease by 1.5 cm ‑1 and 1.3 cm ‑1 , respectively, after transfer (Fig. 4h). The I(A 1g )/I(E 1 2g ) ratio slightly increases from 1.5 to 1.6 after transfer. Both findings indicate a reduction of compressive strain in the material [ 37 , 40 , 43 ], similar to the small sample transfer. However, further comparisons of both materials are not meaningful, as they were synthesized via different growth processes. Conclusion We demonstrate a DI water-based, large-scale transfer method for the 2DMs hBN and MoS 2 grown with scalable MOCVD processes on sapphire substrates. The surface tension of DI water is used to delaminate the 2DMs from the sapphire via a supporting frame. No chemicals, such as KOH or other etchants, were used for the transfer. The material qualities as-grown and after transfer were compared via AFM and SEM measurements as well as statistical Raman analysis. The Raman measurements revealed a reduction of intrinsic compressive strain due to the transfer of the materials from the growth substrate to the target substrate. In addition, no significant material degradation was observable. AFM images of hBN revealed no increase in the particle density after transfer. HRTEM images confirmed that the h-BN thickness was preserved during transfer and showed no residues after transfer. AFM measurements of MoS 2 revealed a slight increase of nanometer-sized particles on the material after transfer. We demonstrated the scalability of our water-based, frame-assisted process toward industry-relevant wafer sizes with the transfer of MoS 2 from a 100 mm diameter sapphire wafer to a 150 mm Si/SiO 2 wafer. Like for the smaller samples, large-scale Raman mapping reveals no significant quality degradation but an intrinsic stress release after transfer. Declarations Competing Interests M.C.L. is the managing director and N.R., M.O., and K.R. are employees of the non-profit company AMO gGmbH, whereas S.K., J.M., E.Y., C.M., A.H., and M.H. are employees of AIXTRON SE. Both companies are partners of several publicly funded research projects and are working on the growth and device integration of 2D materials. L.V., E.R., and J.M. have no competing interests. Funding Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL. Author Contribution The experiments were conceived by N.R., L.V., E.R., M.O., and M.C.L. The 2D material growth was conceived and carried out by S.K., J.M., E.Y., C.M., A.H., and M.H. The 2DM was conducted and performed by N.R. and L.V. Raman, AFM, and SEM measurements and their analysis were performed by N.R., and L.V. The TEM measurements were performed by K.R. and J.M. All authors collaborated on the interpretation of the experiments. The manuscript was written and revised by all. The work was supervised by M.C.L. Acknowledgement We gratefully acknowledge financial support from the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) within the projects NEUROTEC 2 (16ME0399, 16ME0400), NeuroSys 2 (03ZU2106AA, 03ZU2106AE, 03ZU2106AD) and nanodiag BW (03ZU1208BC, 03ZU1208BB), and the German Research Foundation (DFG) under the projects 2D-NEMS (LE 2440/11-1) and TRR 404 Active-3D (528378584). We acknowledge funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation program (via CHIPS-JU) under the project ENERGIZE (101194458). 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Choi, Photoluminescence quenching in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides by Al2O3 encapsulation, Appl. Phys. Lett. 113 (2018) 133104. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5048052. Additional Declarations Competing interest reported. M.C.L. is the managing director and N.R., M.O., and K.R. are employees of the non-profit company AMO gGmbH, whereas S.K., J.M., E.Y., C.M., A.H., and M.H. are employees of AIXTRON SE. Both companies are partners of several publicly funded research projects and are working on the growth and device integration of 2D materials. L.V., E.R., and J.M. have no competing interests. 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13:06:40","extension":"png","order_by":11,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":81351,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Onlinefloatimage4.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7544328/v1/0be7247421133eb6c69715e0.png"},{"id":96729088,"identity":"054e7e5a-1526-405b-89b6-b57385e9d4c8","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 13:06:40","extension":"xml","order_by":12,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":138095,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"08baeb0bf5db4954a85bc3492a6b3ffc1structuring.xml","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7544328/v1/a8dce0e5c91b791dce0050b1.xml"},{"id":96914496,"identity":"dbd60cc0-dbc9-4424-bdf1-c9c66ffd9f25","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-27 14:06:00","extension":"html","order_by":13,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":144456,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"earlyproof.html","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7544328/v1/c0d10b1de9da7f7f47b420f7.html"},{"id":96729070,"identity":"bc611aac-7e9e-462d-9b54-a22da83c167a","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 13:06:40","extension":"png","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":501460,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eSchematic representation of the transfer process. a)\u0026nbsp;Cross section of the material stack and preparation steps of the supporting plastic foil. b)\u0026nbsp;Schematic representation of the transfer process from a cross-sectional view. c)\u0026nbsp;Photographs from the transfer of a MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e piece. Top: Empty beaker with a 3D-printed stamp and MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e with a frame. 2DM for 2DMs. Middle: Beaker half-filled with DI water. The bending of the frame due to the water tension force is visible. The dashed line serves as a guide to the eye. Bottom: The PMMA/MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e stack with the frame floats on the DI water surface after successful lift-off from the sapphire. d-e)\u0026nbsp;Optical microscope images of d)\u0026nbsp;MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e and e)\u0026nbsp;h‑BN on a 2\u0026nbsp;cm\u0026nbsp;×\u0026nbsp;2\u0026nbsp;cm Si/SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e chip created via image stitching. The fence-like structure is a stitching artifact.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7544328/v1/9c5457cb1f7d19370d68ac33.png"},{"id":96729071,"identity":"0f03cd42-538c-48b7-a126-fce72bf9da82","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 13:06:40","extension":"png","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":599435,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eh-BN metrology as-grown and after transfer. a)\u0026nbsp;AFM measurement of the as-grown material with steps in the sapphire visible. b)\u0026nbsp;AFM measurement of the transferred material. c)\u0026nbsp;Raman spectra of h-BN as-grown and after transfer, with the characteristic E\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e peak in both spectra. The 3TO peak of the silicon substrate is also visible in the spectrum after transfer. d)\u0026nbsp;Histograms of the E\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e peak position of h-BN as-grown (ag, blue) and after transfer (at, green). e)\u0026nbsp;Respective histograms of the FWHM of the characteristic peaks as-grown and after transfer. f)\u0026nbsp;Large-scale SEM image of the transferred h-BN on the Si/SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e substrate. g)\u0026nbsp;Colored HRTEM image of the as-grown h‑BN on sapphire encapsulated with SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e. An amorphous layer is visible between the crystalline Al\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e and h-BN. The extracted h‑BN thickness was 4.59\u0026nbsp;nm. h)\u0026nbsp;Colored HRTEM image of the transferred h‑BN on SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e encapsulated with SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e. The measured thickness was 4.60\u0026nbsp;nm.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage2.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7544328/v1/32016a3940c67ce5bee07945.png"},{"id":96729074,"identity":"24454737-e5da-4fde-a2cb-193292a1ad4e","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 13:06:40","extension":"png","order_by":3,"title":"Figure 3","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":426338,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eMoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e metrology as-grown and after transfer. a)\u0026nbsp;AFM measurement of the as-grown material. b)\u0026nbsp;AFM measurement after transfer. c)\u0026nbsp;Raman spectra of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e as-grown and after transfer, with characteristic E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e and A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peaks visible in both spectra. d)\u0026nbsp;Histograms of the E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e and A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peak positions of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e as-grown (ag, red) and after transfer (at, blue). e)\u0026nbsp;Respective histograms of the FWHM of the characteristic peaks as-grown (ag) and after transfer (at). f)\u0026nbsp;Histogram of the I(A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e)/I(E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e) intensity ratios. g)\u0026nbsp;PL spectra of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e as-grown and after transfer. h)\u0026nbsp;SEM image of the transferred MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e on the Si/SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e substrate.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage3.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7544328/v1/b66ee2de3e84694fa93ee47d.png"},{"id":96913905,"identity":"80ca7f3b-6ef8-4113-948b-e5612b702c01","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-27 14:04:45","extension":"png","order_by":4,"title":"Figure 4","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":506904,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003e100\u0026nbsp;mm MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e wafer transfer and corresponding material analysis as and after transfer. a)\u0026nbsp;Photograph taken during the delamination process. The dashed line indicates the propagation line of delamination from the sapphire substrate. b)\u0026nbsp;Photograph of delaminated MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e floating on DI water. The sapphire substrate can be seen remaining on the socket. c)\u0026nbsp;Photograph of transferred MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e on an oxidized 150\u0026nbsp;mm Si wafer. d)\u0026nbsp;AFM measurement of the as-grown material. e)\u0026nbsp;AFM measurement after transfer. f)\u0026nbsp;Colormap of the characteristic A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e Raman peak position after transfer of a 45\u0026nbsp;mm\u0026nbsp;×\u0026nbsp;45\u0026nbsp;mm area. g)\u0026nbsp;Histograms of the E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e and A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peak positions of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e as-grown (ag, blue) and after transfer (at, red). h)\u0026nbsp;Histograms of the FWHMs of the Raman peaks as-grown and after transfer. i)\u0026nbsp;Histograms of the respective I(A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e)/I(E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e) intensity ratios.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage4.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7544328/v1/778f4c62d9e805592542efc1.png"},{"id":107927840,"identity":"8f564493-b46b-4743-9a6b-73c286de1d6e","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-27 16:05:23","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":2343646,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7544328/v1/92a09eba-c841-4e10-81d4-1f492a824b6f.pdf"},{"id":96729075,"identity":"cd339b85-3a01-41ea-be5d-e1326b319141","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 13:06:40","extension":"docx","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":1555492,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"20250905RademacherTransfermethodSI.docx","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7544328/v1/aaff7aea312fd25c0f6f4712.docx"}],"financialInterests":"Competing interest reported. M.C.L. is the managing director and N.R., M.O., and K.R. are employees of the non-profit company AMO gGmbH, whereas S.K., J.M., E.Y., C.M., A.H., and M.H. are employees of AIXTRON SE. Both companies are partners of several publicly funded research projects and are working on the growth and device integration of 2D materials. L.V., E.R., and J.M. have no competing interests.","formattedTitle":"Water-based, large-scale transfer of 2D materials grown on sapphire substrates","fulltext":[{"header":"Introduction","content":"\u003cp\u003eHigh-performance proof-of-concept devices based on two-dimensional materials (2DMs) show great potential for future semiconductor applications in sensing, optoelectronics, and electronics [\u003cspan additionalcitationids=\"CR2 CR3 CR4 CR5 CR6\" citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e7\u003c/span\u003e]. However, this potential may remain elusive unless 2DMs can be integrated into current semiconductor manufacturing process flows. State-of-the-art 2DM growth with scalable techniques such as metal‒organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) is typically not compatible with conventional complementary metal‒oxide‒semiconductor (CMOS) processes because of high growth temperatures (\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;400\u0026deg;C) [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e8\u003c/span\u003e]. Although several groups have recently reported promising approaches to lower the temperature to the desired range [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e10\u003c/span\u003e], layer transfer remains a promising alternative option, i.e., delaminating the material from the high-temperature growth substrate before bonding it to a target substrate. Sapphire is often used as a growth substrate because of its crystalline nature, chemical inertness, high melting point (2040\u0026deg;C), good thermal conductivity (\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;10 W/mK), and controllability of the crystal orientation by a miscut angle (often 0.2\u0026deg;) [\u003cspan additionalcitationids=\"CR12\" citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e11\u003c/span\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003cspan citationid=\"CR13\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e13\u003c/span\u003e]. Sapphire is also widely used as an epitaxial substrate in the III-V semiconductor industry and, hence, is readily available in standardized wafer formats with sizes of up to 12 inches [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e11\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e14\u003c/span\u003e]. 2DM transfer processes from sapphire typically involve the use of chemicals such as potassium hydroxide (KOH). They rely on the skilled handling of the 2DM during transfer (\u0026ldquo;fishing transfer\u0026rdquo;) [\u003cspan additionalcitationids=\"CR16 CR17\" citationid=\"CR15\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e15\u003c/span\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003cspan citationid=\"CR18\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e18\u003c/span\u003e], with three main steps. First, a protective polymer is spin-coated on top of the 2DM. Second, the 2DM is detached from the growth substrate by holding it manually into a KOH or similar solution at an angle. This step is prone to failure because the researcher must manually maintain the right angle for an extended period. Being close to chemicals also poses a hazard. Third, after the 2DM is detached, the target substrate is submerged in the solution to \u0026ldquo;fish\u0026rdquo; out the 2DM film. This is again hazardous and can lead to folding of the 2DM film. Additionally, 2DMs are sensitive to gas-phase and liquid-phase chemicals [\u003cspan additionalcitationids=\"CR20\" citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e19\u003c/span\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e21\u003c/span\u003e]. For example, KOH can increase the polycrystallinity of the 2DM molybdenum disulfide (MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e) [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e16\u003c/span\u003e]. This indicates that certain combinations of chemicals and 2DMs should be avoided.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHere, we present a large-scale transfer method for two widely used 2DMs grown on sapphire: MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN). The transfer utilizes deionized (DI) water and a supporting frame for easier delamination and handling of the 2DM films. The absence of acids or bases eliminates their impact on the 2DMs and the hazards of handling them, while the frame stabilizes the fragile 2D films during transfer. Additionally, DI water is environmentally friendly and abundant. We verified the quality of our transfer by atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and statistical Raman spectroscopy of the as-grown and transferred materials.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Experiment","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe 2D materials were grown via MOCVD on sapphire substrates in an AIXTRON cold-wall 2D R\u0026amp;D Close Coupled Showerhead (CSS\u0026reg;) reactor in 19\u0026times;2\u0026rdquo; and 5\u0026times;4\u0026rdquo; wafer configurations. We first developed a transfer process for cm-sized samples before scaling it to 100 mm wafers. First, polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) 950k A6 was spin-coated onto the 2DMs to form an approximately 500 nm thick protection and support layer (see Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003ea, top). Second, the 2\u0026rdquo; wafers were cut with a diamond scriber to the desired size. The support frame was prepared from blue dicing tape 1008R (70 \u0026micro;m polyvinyl chloride with a 10 \u0026micro;m acrylic adhesive layer) and surrounding plastic foil (commercially available printer foil, AVERY Zweckform GmbH) (see Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003ea, middle). The hole in the blue tape was smaller than the sapphire samples to attach the frame to the sapphire/2DM/PMMA stack (see Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003ea, bottom).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe framed sample was then fixed with double-sided tape on a polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG) plastic cube with a defined surface angle of 10\u0026deg; inside a glass beaker (Figs.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003eb, c, at the top). This angle was empirically determined to be optimal for 1.5 cm \u0026times; 1.5 cm samples. We then filled the glass beaker with DI water until the water surface reached the sample. The surface tension of the DI water, supported by the hydrophobic behavior of the dicing tape, caused the frame to float, transferring the surface tension force through the frame to the 2DM/PMMA stack (Figs.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003eb and \u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003ec, middle). The water eventually intercalated into the sapphire-2DM van der Waals gap, supported by the upward force of the frame, delaminating the 2DM from the sapphire. During delamination, we gradually filled the beaker with more water until the frame with the PMMA/2DM stack floated completely (Figs.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003eb and \u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003ec, bottom). The process time ranged from a few minutes to approximately half an hour, depending on the adhesion force between the 2DMs and the sapphire. The absence of bases or acids allows transfer without further decontamination steps.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOur target substrates were 2 \u0026times; 2 cm silicon chips with 300 nm thermal silicon dioxide (SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e). A drop of DI water was placed onto the silicon chips. The frame with the 2DM was lifted from the DI water using tweezers, holding only the frame. Then, the 2DM was lowered onto the DI water drop, to which it adhered. This also flattened it upon contact, preventing the formation of cracks and wrinkles. The samples were dried at room temperature under laminar flow for one day. The frames were subsequently cut with a scalpel and removed. The PMMA/2DM stack remained on the target substrates, which were heated to 150\u0026deg;C for 10 minutes to remove residual water and increase the adhesion of the 2DMs [\u003cspan additionalcitationids=\"CR23\" citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e22\u003c/span\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e24\u003c/span\u003e]. Finally, the samples were placed in acetone for 3 hours, rinsed in IPA, and heated under vacuum to 300\u0026deg;C for 2 hours to remove the PMMA. Optical microscope images of cm-scale h-BN and MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e transferred onto 2 cm \u0026times; 2 cm Si/SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e chips are shown in Figs.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003ee and \u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003ef, respectively. Each image consists of 24 single microscope images stitched together, which leads to regular horizontal and vertical features, i.e., artifacts.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Results and Discussion","content":"\u003cp\u003eWe assessed the qualities of the hBN and MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e materials as-grown and after transfer via atomic force microscopy (AFM), Raman spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). AFM was used in tapping mode to measure the surface topography of the materials. Raman spectroscopy can provide information on the layer number, defects, strain, and doping of 2DMs [25]. Since the Raman signal of hBN is weaker than that of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e, we used a higher laser power and conducted fewer measurements for the former. We recorded 100 and 900 individual Raman spectra for hBN and MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e, respectively, over a 10 \u0026micro;m \u0026times; 10 \u0026micro;m area on both the as-grown and transferred materials. We used a laser with a wavelength of λ\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;532 nm at powers of 20 mW (hBN) and 1 mW (MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e) and an 1800 g/mm grating, resulting in a resolution of 0.3 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e. The characteristic Raman peaks in every spectrum were fitted with Lorentz functions [26]. Additionally, we performed photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy on both the as-grown and transferred MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ehBN\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn AFM topography scan of the as-grown hBN revealed steps in the sapphire growth substrate formed at high temperatures (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003ea), in line with a report in the literature [27]. In addition, wrinkles and particles are visible. After transfer, the hBN appears smoother, which we attribute to the low RMS roughness of 360 pm of the thermally grown SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e substrate (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003eb). Wrinkles with the same periodicity as in the as-grown material vanish partially, possibly due to the release of intrinsic strain upon substrate change [28]. The intrinsic strain in CVD hBN is typically induced when the growth wafer is cooled to room temperature due to different thermal expansion coefficients of hBN and sapphire. In contrast, wrinkles with a greater periodicity appear, which were likely formed during material transfer. The particle density remains unchanged.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Raman spectra of the as-grown and transferred hBN (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003ec) both reveal the characteristic E\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e peak at ~\u0026thinsp;1368 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e [29]. An additional small peak appears at ~\u0026thinsp;1450 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e after transfer, identified as the 3TO peak from the silicon substrate [30]. The statistical Raman analysis in Figs.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003ed and \u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003ee reveals a redshift of the peak position from 1368 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e to 1367 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e after transfer. Moreover, the FWHM decreased from 26.7 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e to 23 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e. The peak position of the as-grown material corresponds to mono- or bilayer hBN, which contradicts the 14\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;7 layers measured via AFM after transfer (compare Figs. S1 and S2 in the supporting information) and the thickness of 4.6 nm extracted from TEM images (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003eg, h). We attribute this peak position to the intrinsic strain in the material already observed as wrinkles in the AFM scan in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003ea, which can easily lead to a slight redshift of the peak position [31]. After transfer, the peak position of 1367 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e is closer to the bulk value of 1366 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e. The release of intrinsic stress can also explain the decrease in the FWHM after transfer [32]. Doping or defects typically lead to an increase in the FWHM [33]. Thus, we conclude that our transfer process increases the quality in terms of the FWHM of the Raman signal.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWrinkles on the hBN surface are also visible in the SEM image after transfer (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003ef) with the same periodicity as those observed in the AFM measurement (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003eb). They appear as bright lines against a gray background. Dirt or PMMA residues appear as small bright spots within the image. These bright spots are only faintly visible in the SEM image because of their low particle density and small size, typically a few tens of nanometers, which supports the results of the AFM measurement in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003eb.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWe performed high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) on cross sections of both the as-grown (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003eg) and the transferred hBN (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003eh) samples to measure the thickness with atomic resolution and clarify the contradictory AFM thickness and Raman measurements discussed earlier. Both samples were encapsulated in evaporated SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e prior to lamella preparation to protect the hBN. In Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003eg, the layered structure of the hBN (green) is clearly visible, positioned between the crystalline Al\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e (orange) and the protective SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e (blue). An amorphous layer between the hBN and the crystalline Al\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e is visible, which is likely amorphized Al\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e [34] or an aluminum-nitride compound formed during the growth process [35]. We measure a thickness of the as-grown hBN of 4.59 nm, consistent with our AFM thickness measurement after transfer (see supporting information Figs. S1 and S2). Thus, we conclude that the Raman peak shift of the as-grown hBN at ~\u0026thinsp;1368 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e is indeed due to intrinsic strain. In Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003eh, the transferred hBN (green) is sandwiched between the SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e of the target substrate and the protective SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e (blue). The layered structure of the hBN is preserved, and no significant defects are visible. HRTEM revealed no PMMA or other contaminants at the interfaces of the hBN. Notably, we measured the same hBN thickness of 4.6 nm as that of the as-grown material. Overall, the HRTEM analysis revealed no significant degradation or material loss during the transfer process.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eMoS\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAFM scans in Figs.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003ea and \u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003eb show the nanocrystallinity of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e. They also reveal the presence of contamination particles (bright spots) and vertical nanosheets (bright lines), a typical byproduct of thick MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e growth [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR36\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e36\u003c/span\u003e]. The nanocrystalline structure of MoS₂ remained after transfer, and the number of particles increased slightly.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Raman analysis results as-grown and after transfer are shown in Figs.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003ec-f. Two exemplary spectra as-grown and after transfer (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003ec) reveal the characteristic E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e and A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peaks of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e at 383 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e and 408 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e, respectively [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR37\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e37\u003c/span\u003e]. The spectrum after transfer also shows the characteristic peak of the silicon substrate at 520 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e. Histograms of the Raman peak positions and full width at half maximum (FWHM) values from MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e as-grown (ag) and after transfer (at) are shown in Figs.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003ed and \u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003ee. A Gaussian distribution function fitted to the histograms revealed a slight redshift of both the E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e and A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peaks (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003ed) by approximately 2 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e and 1.5 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e, respectively. The FWHM of the E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e peak increased from 3.5 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e to 3.7 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e after transfer. In contrast, the FWHM of the A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peak decreased from 3.6 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e to 3.5 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e (compare Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003ee). These changes lie within the error margins of our measurement setup (0.41 cm‑1 for the FWHM calculation; see supporting information section S1), and we conclude that there is no detectable change due to transfer. The intensity ratio of the A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peak to the E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e peak increases from 1.57 to 2.03 after transfer, or 28.4%. The photoluminescence (PL) data as-grown and after transfer in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003eg show a slight blueshift of the excitonic A and B peaks. The B peak is more pronounced after transfer than during the measurement of the as-grown material.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe shift in the characteristic peak positions in the Raman and PL spectra and the increase in the I(A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e)/I(E\u003csub\u003e12g\u003c/sub\u003e) intensity ratio indicate a change in the material properties due to transfer. In MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e, the number of layers, material strain, doping, and defects influence the characteristic peak positions [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e25\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR37\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e37\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e38\u003c/span\u003e]. We measured a thickness of 7.1\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.4 nm of the MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e after transfer via AFM at the edge of a transferred film (Figs. S3 and S4 in the supporting information), which corresponds to 11\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2 layers [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR39\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e39\u003c/span\u003e]. The extracted characteristic peak positions and the I(E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e)/I(A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e) ratio of 0.5 support the finding of the AFM edge scan, as it indicates bulk material behavior [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e38\u003c/span\u003e]. The Raman peaks are influenced by the number of layers only up to ~\u0026thinsp;seven layers, whereas they converge to bulk material behavior for thicker materials [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e38\u003c/span\u003e]. Therefore, we do not expect any influence of a possible change in the number of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e layers on the Raman signals. The redshift of the two peaks after transfer indicates an increase in the tensile biaxial strain inside the material [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e25\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan additionalcitationids=\"CR41\" citationid=\"CR40\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e40\u003c/span\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003cspan citationid=\"CR42\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e42\u003c/span\u003e]. An increase in the I(A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e)/I(E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e) ratio indicates either a decrease in the biaxial compression strain or tensile strain [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e43\u003c/span\u003e]. One potential explanation for our findings is that the initial compression strain of the as-grown material is partially released in the transferred material. The shift of the A peak in the PL spectrum supports a change in the intrinsic strain of the material [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR41\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e41\u003c/span\u003e]. The doping of a material with excess charge influences the A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peak position and FWHM [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR37\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e37\u003c/span\u003e], which we do not observe here. Our PL signal reveals less quenching of the B peak and a blueshift of the A peak, indicating less n-doping after transfer. We attribute this to the substrate change from Al\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e (growth substrate) to SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e (target substrate). Al\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e in the vicinity of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e often leads to n-type doping because of positive fixed charges at the Al\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e interface [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR44\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e44\u003c/span\u003e]. These changes manifest as a redshift of the A peak and quenching of the B peak in the PL signal [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e45\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR46\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e46\u003c/span\u003e]. The absence of Al\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e after transfer leads to the opposite behavior of the PL signal.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe characteristic Raman peak positions are also influenced by lattice defects, i.e., an increase in the defect density leads to a redshift of the E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e peak and a (comparably smaller) blueshift of the A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peak [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e25\u003c/span\u003e]. At the same time, the FWHM of the peaks increases [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e25\u003c/span\u003e]. We exclude a significant increase in the defect density because there is no blueshift of the A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peak and no significant increase in the FWHM of the peaks.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe SEM image of the transferred MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003eh confirms the presence of contamination particles (bright spots) and vertical growth walls (lines), which are also visible in the AFM data. We did not observe macroscopic polymer residues or cracks.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn summary, the analysis of the Raman and PL spectra revealed no significant degradation in material quality but a decrease in compressive strain after transfer. Notably, the reduction in compressive strain aligns with the results of the hBN transfer. We observed a slight increase in the number of particles on the transferred film in the AFM scans, likely due to PMMA contamination.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eScalability\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe demonstrated the scalability of the method through the wafer-scale transfer of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e grown on a 100 mm sapphire wafer. The wafer was prepared like the samples: first, an approximately 500 nm thick PMMA film was spin-coated as a supporting film. Second, a round-shaped frame was prepared (see Fig.\u0026nbsp;4a). The framed wafer was fixed with double-sided tape onto a PETG socket placed on the ground of a 20 cm \u0026times; 30 cm plastic tub. We used a round socket with a diameter of 60 mm and an angle of 5\u0026deg; instead of 10\u0026deg; because of the larger size of the MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e wafer.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFigure 4\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003e100 mm MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e wafer transfer and corresponding material analysis as and after transfer. a) Photograph taken during the delamination process. The dashed line indicates the propagation line of delamination from the sapphire substrate. b) Photograph of delaminated MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e floating on DI water. The sapphire substrate can be seen remaining on the socket. c) Photograph of transferred MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e on an oxidized 150 mm Si wafer. d) AFM measurement of the as-grown material. e) AFM measurement after transfer. f) Colormap of the characteristic A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e Raman peak position after transfer of a 45 mm \u0026times; 45 mm area. g) Histograms of the E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e and A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peak positions of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e as-grown (ag, blue) and after transfer (at, red). h) Histograms of the FWHMs of the Raman peaks as-grown and after transfer. i) Histograms of the respective I(A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e)/I(E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e) intensity ratios.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe delamination of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e was carried out in the same manner as for the smaller samples. Photographs of different stages of transfer are presented in Figs.\u0026nbsp;4a\u0026ndash;c. In Fig.\u0026nbsp;4a, approximately half of the MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e is detached from the growth substrate, as visible by a different reflection of the light on the wafer in the lower half compared with that in the upper half. The white dashed line indicates the propagation line of delamination from the growth substrate. Once MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e was completely detached from the growth substrate, it floated on the water surface (Fig.\u0026nbsp;4b).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe wet transfer of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e differs at this point from that of the small samples, as it is too unstable to be safely removed from the water. Instead, we used a \u0026ldquo;fishing method\u0026rdquo;: the target substrate, a Si wafer with 300 nm thermally oxidized SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e, was submerged in the water, moved below the MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e/PMMA stack, and carefully extracted from the DI water at an angle, \u0026ldquo;fishing\u0026rdquo; the stack onto the SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e surface. The frame helped to handle and stabilize the 2DM/PMMA stack on the water surface. The transferred material subsequently underwent the same process of drying, PMMA removal, and annealing as the smaller samples did.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRaman and AFM measurements were taken as-grown and after transfer. The results are shown in Figs.\u0026nbsp;4d-i. An AFM scan of a 2 \u0026micro;m \u0026times; 2 \u0026micro;m area of the as-grown material (Fig.\u0026nbsp;4d) reveals many vertical nanosheets that likely formed during material growth [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR36\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e36\u003c/span\u003e]. These are visible as bright lines in the AFM image. The vertical nanosheets are thicker (~\u0026thinsp;90 nm vs. ~20 nm) and higher (~\u0026thinsp;8 nm vs. ~30 nm) compared to the MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e used for the cm-scale transfer (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003ea) due to different growth processes. A comparison of the AFM measurements as-grown (Fig.\u0026nbsp;4d) and after (Fig.\u0026nbsp;4e) the transfer indicates a lower density of vertical nanosheets after the transfer, likely because of the different measurement positions before and after the transfer. More importantly, no contamination or cracks are visible after transfer.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFigure\u0026nbsp;4f shows a color map of the A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peak positions after MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e transfer of 60 \u0026times; 60 Raman spectra over an area of 45 mm \u0026times; 45 mm, exhibiting a largely homogeneous region with a few missing spots (dark blue and yellow pixels in the center) where no Raman signal of the MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e could be observed. A color map of the E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e peak position can be found in the supporting information Fig. S5c. Notably, this color map also contains missing spots that are not at the same positions as those in Fig.\u0026nbsp;4f. Thus, some of the missing spots may arise from fitting failures and some may arise from defects in the material introduced during transfer. However, with only\u0026thinsp;~\u0026thinsp;10 missing pixels out of 3600, the proven MoS₂ coverage remains high at approximately 99.7%. The corresponding large-area Raman scans of the as-grown material can be found in the supporting information Figs. S5a and S5b.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFigures\u0026nbsp;4g-i show histograms of the peak positions, the FWHM, and the intensity ratio of the characteristic E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e and A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peaks as-grown and after transfer. The results are similar to the results of the MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e transfer of the smaller samples (Figs.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003ed-f). A redshift of the E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e and A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peaks by 0.5 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e and 0.7 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e, respectively, is observed due to the transfer (Fig.\u0026nbsp;4g). The FWHMs of the E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e and A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e peaks decrease by 1.5 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e and 1.3 cm\u003csup\u003e‑1\u003c/sup\u003e, respectively, after transfer (Fig.\u0026nbsp;4h). The I(A\u003csub\u003e1g\u003c/sub\u003e)/I(E\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003e2g\u003c/sub\u003e) ratio slightly increases from 1.5 to 1.6 after transfer. Both findings indicate a reduction of compressive strain in the material [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR37\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e37\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR40\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e40\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e43\u003c/span\u003e], similar to the small sample transfer. However, further comparisons of both materials are not meaningful, as they were synthesized via different growth processes.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Conclusion","content":"\u003cp\u003eWe demonstrate a DI water-based, large-scale transfer method for the 2DMs hBN and MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e grown with scalable MOCVD processes on sapphire substrates. The surface tension of DI water is used to delaminate the 2DMs from the sapphire via a supporting frame. No chemicals, such as KOH or other etchants, were used for the transfer. The material qualities as-grown and after transfer were compared via AFM and SEM measurements as well as statistical Raman analysis. The Raman measurements revealed a reduction of intrinsic compressive strain due to the transfer of the materials from the growth substrate to the target substrate. In addition, no significant material degradation was observable. AFM images of hBN revealed no increase in the particle density after transfer. HRTEM images confirmed that the h-BN thickness was preserved during transfer and showed no residues after transfer. AFM measurements of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e revealed a slight increase of nanometer-sized particles on the material after transfer. We demonstrated the scalability of our water-based, frame-assisted process toward industry-relevant wafer sizes with the transfer of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e from a 100 mm diameter sapphire wafer to a 150 mm Si/SiO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e wafer. Like for the smaller samples, large-scale Raman mapping reveals no significant quality degradation but an intrinsic stress release after transfer.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ch2\u003eCompeting Interests\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eM.C.L. is the managing director and N.R., M.O., and K.R. are employees of the non-profit company AMO gGmbH, whereas S.K., J.M., E.Y., C.M., A.H., and M.H. are employees of AIXTRON SE. Both companies are partners of several publicly funded research projects and are working on the growth and device integration of 2D materials. L.V., E.R., and J.M. have no competing interests.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eFunding\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eOpen Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAuthor Contribution\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe experiments were conceived by N.R., L.V., E.R., M.O., and M.C.L. The 2D material growth was conceived and carried out by S.K., J.M., E.Y., C.M., A.H., and M.H. The 2DM was conducted and performed by N.R. and L.V. Raman, AFM, and SEM measurements and their analysis were performed by N.R., and L.V. The TEM measurements were performed by K.R. and J.M. All authors collaborated on the interpretation of the experiments. The manuscript was written and revised by all. The work was supervised by M.C.L.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAcknowledgement\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eWe gratefully acknowledge financial support from the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) within the projects NEUROTEC 2 (16ME0399, 16ME0400), NeuroSys 2 (03ZU2106AA, 03ZU2106AE, 03ZU2106AD) and nanodiag BW (03ZU1208BC, 03ZU1208BB), and the German Research Foundation (DFG) under the projects 2D-NEMS (LE 2440/11-1) and TRR 404 Active-3D (528378584). We acknowledge funding from the European Union\u0026rsquo;s Horizon Europe research and innovation program (via CHIPS-JU) under the project ENERGIZE (101194458). The views and opinions expressed are those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the European Commission can be held responsible for them.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eData Availability\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe datasets generated and/or analyzed during this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eF.H.L. Koppens, T. Mueller, P. Avouris, A.C. Ferrari, M.S. Vitiello, M. Polini, Photodetectors based on graphene, other two-dimensional materials and hybrid systems, Nat. Nanotechnol. 9 (2014) 780\u0026ndash;793. https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2014.215.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA.C. Ferrari, F. Bonaccorso, V. 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Mater. 8 (2022) 2200123. https://doi.org/10.1002/aelm.202200123.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eS.Y. Kim, H.I. Yang, W. Choi, Photoluminescence quenching in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides by Al2O3 encapsulation, Appl. Phys. Lett. 113 (2018) 133104. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5048052.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"npj-2d-materials-and-applications","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"npj2dmaterials","sideBox":"Learn more about [npj 2D Materials and Applications](http://www.nature.com/npj2dmaterials/)","snPcode":"41699","submissionUrl":"https://submission.springernature.com/new-submission/41699/3","title":"npj 2D Materials and Applications","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"NPJ","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"2D materials, wet transfer, delamination, sapphire, Raman spectroscopy","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7544328/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7544328/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eTwo-dimensional materials (2DMs) hold significant potential for future electronics, as demonstrated by high-performing devices for sensing, optics, and electronics. However, scalable growth techniques such as metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) typically require high temperatures, which limit their integration with conventional semiconductor processes. Therefore, reliable transfer processes from crystalline, low-contamination growth substrates such as sapphire are essential. Existing methods using chemicals such as potassium hydroxide (KOH) have potential quality issues and require manual handling and enhanced safety precautions. Here, we introduce a deionized water-based, frame-assisted, large-scale transfer method for two widely used two-dimensional materials, molybdenum disulfide (MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e) and hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN). We demonstrate the scalability of our process with the transfer of MoS\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e from a 100 mm diameter sapphire wafer. The material quality was verified as-grown and after transfer via atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The data show less compressive strain levels and insignificant changes in the doping or contamination of 2DMs after transfer.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Water-based, large-scale transfer of 2D materials grown on sapphire substrates","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-11-25 13:06:35","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7544328/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2025-11-26T19:14:32+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-11-17T17:07:16+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-11-06T19:05:01+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"110437704115390074825689826915540687110","date":"2025-10-28T12:52:31+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"244353379329394643374554509197022607861","date":"2025-10-28T11:08:51+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2025-10-27T21:59:53+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2025-09-11T12:37:02+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2025-09-09T06:26:17+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"npj 2D Materials and Applications","date":"2025-09-05T12:34:55+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"npj-2d-materials-and-applications","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"npj2dmaterials","sideBox":"Learn more about [npj 2D Materials and Applications](http://www.nature.com/npj2dmaterials/)","snPcode":"41699","submissionUrl":"https://submission.springernature.com/new-submission/41699/3","title":"npj 2D Materials and Applications","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"NPJ","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"5335d4a1-94d3-4fc4-8266-ee1cc2d61cd9","owner":[],"postedDate":"November 25th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"published-in-journal","subjectAreas":[{"id":58134262,"name":"Physical sciences/Chemistry"},{"id":58134263,"name":"Physical sciences/Materials science"},{"id":58134264,"name":"Physical sciences/Nanoscience and technology"},{"id":58134265,"name":"Physical sciences/Optics and photonics"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-27T16:03:25+00:00","versionOfRecord":{"articleIdentity":"rs-7544328","link":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41699-026-00696-z","journal":{"identity":"npj-2d-materials-and-applications","isVorOnly":false,"title":"npj 2D Materials and Applications"},"publishedOn":"2026-04-20 15:59:41","publishedOnDateReadable":"April 20th, 2026"},"versionCreatedAt":"2025-11-25 13:06:35","video":"","vorDoi":"10.1038/s41699-026-00696-z","vorDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41699-026-00696-z","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7544328","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7544328","identity":"rs-7544328","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}