Etching technology – one of the representative modern semiconductor device makers – serves as a broad descriptor for the process of removing material from the surfaces of various materials, whether partially or entirely. Meanwhile, thinning technology represents a novel and highly specialized approach within the realm of etching technology. It indicates the importance of achieving an exceptionally sophisticated and precise removal of material, layer-by-layer, at the nanoscale. Notably, thinning technology has gained substantial momentum, particularly in top–down strategies aimed at pushing the frontiers of nano-worlds. This rapid development in thinning technology has generated substantial interest among researchers from diverse backgrounds, including those in the fields of chemistry, physics, and engineering. Precisely and expertly controlling the layer numbers of 2D materials through the thinning procedure has been considered as a crucial step. This is because the thinning processes lead to variations in the electrical and optical characteristics. In this comprehensive review, the strategies for top–down thinning of representative 2D materials (e.g., graphene, black phosphorus, MoS₂, h-BN, WS₂, MoSe₂, and WSe₂) based on conventional plasma-assisted thinning, integrated cyclic plasma-assisted thinning, laser-assisted thinning, metal-assisted splitting, and layer-resolved splitting are covered in detail, along with their mechanisms and benefits. Additionally, this review further explores the latest advancements in terms of the potential advantages of semiconductor devices achieved by top–down 2D material thinning procedures.

中文翻译：

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二维材料的逐层减薄

蚀刻技术是现代半导体器件制造商的代表之一，它是从各种材料表面部分或全部去除材料的过程的广泛描述。同时，减薄技术代表了蚀刻技术领域中一种新颖且高度专业化的方法。它表明了在纳米尺度上实现极其复杂和精确的逐层材料去除的重要性。值得注意的是，减薄技术已经获得了巨大的发展动力，特别是在旨在推动纳米世界前沿的自上而下的战略中。减薄技术的快速发展引起了来自不同背景的研究人员的极大兴趣，包括化学、物理和工程领域的研究人员。通过减薄过程精确而专业地控制二维材料的层数被认为是关键步骤。这是因为减薄工艺会导致电学和光学特性的变化。在这篇综合综述中，基于传统等离子体辅助减薄、集成的方法，对代表性二维材料（例如石墨烯、黑磷、MoS ₂、h-BN、WS ₂、MoSe ₂和 WSe ₂ ）进行自上而下的减薄策略。详细介绍了循环等离子体辅助减薄、激光辅助减薄、金属辅助分裂和层分辨分裂及其机制和优点。此外，本综述进一步探讨了通过自上而下的二维材料减薄程序实现的半导体器件的潜在优势方面的最新进展。