Metallic and ferromagnetic edges in molybdenum disulfide nanoribbons

The magnetic and electronic properties of MoS₂ nanoribbons with zigzag and armchair edges are investigated using LSDA-DFT. We found that the properties of the nanoribbons are very different from bulk MoS₂ due to edge states. Armchair nanoribbons could be metallic and exhibit a magnetic moment; however, when passivating with hydrogen, they become semiconducting. Zigzag nanoribbons are metallic and exhibit unusual magnetic properties regardless of passivation. Our results could explain the recent evidence of ferromagnetism in flat MoS₂ clusters, and motivate the synthesis of novel MoS₂ nanosystems.