The rise of advanced 2D semiconductors: a panoramic view

The “Graphene Rush” has recently sparked a surge of study in the realm of elemental 2D materials. Graphene analogs are also reported in the form of thin sheets, i.e., phosphorene, silicene, germanene, stanene, graphene/graphene derived, transition metal-dichalcogenides (TMDs), transition metal carbides (TMCs), and transition metal nitrides (TMNs), and transition metal oxides (TMOs), etc. This paper seeks to meet the demand for comprehensive research on current advances, challenges, and potentials in these 2-D semiconducting materials. Because of its higher degree of potential, graphene, like "Dirac-cone", silicene is said to have enormous capabilities to be integrated with the well-established silicon technology. This paper will include various experimental synthesis and characterization procedures, various approaches to customizing these in 2-D semiconducting materials, its intrinsic electronic/spintronic/sensing properties, and various approaches to tailor the electronic properties of these novel 2-D nanomaterials.