Chemical Scissor Medicated Intercalation of NbS₂ by Transition Metal for Electromagnetic Properties Tuning

Intercalation of layered materials offers an effective approach for tunning their structures and generating unprecedented properties. The multiple van der Waals (vdW) gap combined with long-range ordering guests can change the interaction of layered host materials and electromagnetic field. Herein, a chemical-scissor intercalation protocol medicated by molten salt is proposed for tailing the electromagnetic properties of transitional metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs). NbS₂ is functional intercalated by heteroatoms (Fe, Co, Ni). The intercalated NbS₂ with superlattice exhibit improved dielectric properties due to the reduced Brillouin zone size and the local electron distribution. Both the computational and experimental investigations indicate enhanced electron transport and additional polarized centers caused by intercalation. Overall, this work shows the great potential of structure editing of vdW materials, whilst intercalation via the chemical scissor in molten salts is considered a feasible intercalation strategy to further enrich their applications.