Electronic Stripes and Transport Properties in Borophene Heterostructures

Abstract: We performed a theoretical investigation of the structural and electronic properties of (i) pristine, and (ii) superlattice structures of borophene. In (i), by combining first-principles calculations, based on the density functional theory (DFT), and simulations of the X-ray Absorption Near-Edge Structure (XANES) we present a comprehensive picture connecting the atomic arrangement of borophene and the X-ray absorption spectra. Once we have characterized the electronic properties of the pristine systems, we next examined the electronic confinement effects in 2D borophene superlattices (BSLs) [(ii)]. Here, the BSL structures were made by attaching laterally two different structural phases of borophene. The energetic stability, and the electronic properties of those BSLs were examined based on total energy DFT calculations. We find a highly anisotropic electronic structure, characterized by the electronic confinement effects, and the formation of metallic channels along the superlattices. Combining DFT and the Landauer-B\"uttiker formalism, we investigate the electronic transport properties in the BSLs. Our results of the transmission probability reveal that the electronic transport is ruled by {\pi} or a combination of {\pi} and {\sigma} transmission channels, depending on the atomic arrangement and periodicity of the superlattices. Finally we show that there is huge magnification on the directional dependence of the electronic transport properties in BSLs, in comparision with the pristine borophene phase. Those findings indicate that BSLs are quite interesting systems in order to design conductive nanoribbons in a 2D platform.