Reconstructing into a denser phase

Subjects Two-dimensional materials Tellurium vacancies can drive atomic reconstruction in PdTe2 thin films, converting them into non-layered PdTe. Such a non-stoichiometric phase transition yields large-scale thin-film superconductors and can also create an intermediate heterostructure that enables helicity-sensitive terahertz emission. Access through your institution Buy or subscribe This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution Access options Access through your institution Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription $32.99 / 30 days cancel any time Learn more Subscribe to this journal Receive 12 print issues and online access $259.00 per year only $21.58 per issue Learn more Rent or buy this article Prices vary by article type from$1.95 to$39.95 Learn more Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout Fig. 1: Conceptual illustration of the non-stoichiometric phase transition and its consequences. ReferencesLi, W., Qian, X. & Li, J. Nat. Rev. Mater. 6, 829–846 (2021).Article CAS Google Scholar Zhao, X. et al. Nature 581, 171–177 (2020).Article CAS PubMed Google Scholar Wang, F. et al. Nat. Commun. 14, 4945 (2023).Article CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar Chen, Z. et al. Nat. Mater. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-025-02471-9 (2026).Article PubMed Google Scholar Liu, X. et al. Nat. Mater. 23, 1363–1369 (2024).Article CAS PubMed Google Scholar Li, Z. et al. Nat. Mater. 23, 1355–1362 (2024).Article CAS PubMed Google Scholar Zhang, J. W. et al. Nat. Mater. 24, 369–376 (2025).Article CAS PubMed Google Scholar Download referencesAuthor informationAuthors and AffiliationsDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Semiconductor Materials and Devices Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), Ulsan, Republic of KoreaJaewon Wang & Soon-Yong KwonAuthorsJaewon WangView author publicationsSearch author on:PubMed Google ScholarSoon-Yong KwonView author publicationsSearch author on:PubMed Google ScholarCorresponding authorCorrespondence to Soon-Yong Kwon.Ethics declarations Competing interests The authors declare no competing interests. Rights and permissionsReprints and permissionsAbout this articleCite this articleWang, J., Kwon, SY. Reconstructing into a denser phase. Nat. Mater. (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-026-02502-zDownload citationPublished: 13 February 2026Version of record: 13 February 2026DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-026-02502-zShare this articleAnyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:Get shareable linkSorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.Copy shareable link to clipboard Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative Large-area non-stoichiometric phase transition in transition metal chalcogenide films Zhongqiang ChenJin-an ShiXuefeng Wang Nature Materials Article 16 Jan 2026