Definition
Plain language
A material that's only a few atoms thick, like graphene.
As stated in the literature
A class of materials with atomic-scale thickness in one dimension, including graphene, hexagonal boron nitride, and transition metal dichalcogenides; foundational to van der Waals heterostructures.
Also called: 2D material, 2D materials
Why it matters: These materials underpin a frontier of physics and electronics research, including custom-engineered quantum devices.
For example, a single sheet of graphene is just one carbon atom thick yet stronger than steel.
Heard on the show
“Crucially, it's rule-based rather than trained — which means it can generalize to a new 2D material with fewer than five labeled images.”Episode 072 — A Robot Made Graphene Without Help, And Caught Itself Hallucinating