Structural investigations of ferecrystals [(SnSe)1+δ]m[TSe2]n (T = Mo, Ta) by means of transmission electron microscopy

The nanostructure of ferecrystals [(SnSe)
_1+δ
]
_m
[TSe
₂
]
_n
with T = Mo, Ta, synthesized by the modulated elemental reactants (MER) method with 1 ≤ m, n ≤ 30, was investigated by various methods of transmission and scanning transmission electron microscopy (TEM/STEM), including precession electron diffraction (PED). The influence of the layer composition, sequence, and thickness, on the resulting intergrowth structure and disorder is elucidated, including various aspects of intra- and inter-layer stacking disorder.