Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 June 2013
The symmetry properties of many inorganic two-dimensional monolayer crystals make them piezoelectric, whereas their three-dimensional parent crystals are not. The emergence of piezoelectricity in the single-layer limit points toward intriguing electromechanical effects and applications in the single- or few-layer regime. We use density functional theory to calculate the piezoelectric coefficients of BN, MoS2, MoSe2, MoTe2, WS2, WSe2 and WTe2. These coefficients are found to be comparable to, and in some cases greater than those of commonly used wurtzite piezoelectrics. The centrosymmetry of a BN bilayer prevents a piezoelectric effect for this structure. However, by developing an elastic model, we find that the bilayer exhibits an unusual electromechanical coupling to the curvature, similar to that of a bimorph. A BN bilayer is found to amplify the constituent monolayers’ in-plane piezoelectric displacements by factors on the order of 103-104 into out-of plane deflections.